New York City, NY, USA: A UCLA study shows that detentions of Asian Americans increased significantly under former President Trump compared to the Biden administration, with most individuals held having no felony convictions.
The report, titled “ICE Detention of Asians: Increased Numbers and Hardships Under Trump,” reveals that in 2025, most Asian Americans held for deportation had no prior legal convictions, despite the Trump administration’s focus on targeting high-priority cases.
The research, conducted by the UCLA Asian American Studies Centre and the UCLA Centre for Neighbourhood Knowledge, found that between February and July 2025, immigration authorities detained 3,705 Asian Americans.
Data showed that detentions rose in May, peaked in June, and slowed in July. Analysts suggested that court challenges to administration policies, along with operational pressures on ICE, likely contributed to the decline during the latter part of the period. The administration had previously set a target of one million deportations per year.
While some Asian Americans with serious legal convictions were detained, the report emphasised that a large portion of the detentions involved individuals with no prior convictions.
Under Trump, only 31 per cent of detained Asian Americans had felony convictions, compared to 35 per cent during the same period in 2024 under President Biden. The number of detainees without convictions increased more than threefold under the Trump administration.
California, Texas, and New York accounted for nearly half of all detentions. California alone reported more than nine times the number of Asian Americans held compared to the Biden period. Among nationalities, the largest groups were from China and India, followed by Vietnam, Laos, and Nepal.
The report also highlighted the difficulties caused by frequent transfers between detention centres. On average, detainees under Trump were relocated 2.8 times, compared to 1.9 times under Biden. At least 400 detainees from California were moved out of state, complicating access for family members and legal support.
By June and July, detainees without prior convictions outnumbered those with convictions by nearly two to one. The study warned that immigration enforcement may continue to expand. It cited a September 4 raid at a Hyundai electric vehicle plant in Georgia, where roughly 300 South Korean workers were detained, as part of a wider enforcement approach targeting Asian immigrants.
“Unfortunately, it appears that the detention of individuals in similar circumstances is unlikely to decrease and may even rise,” the report concluded.
