Data from the Deportation Data Project shows ICE arrests in the San Diego region surged dramatically over 2025 into 2026, rising from 169 in January 2025 to 1,964 in July 2026, with nearly 18,000 total arrests recorded between January 2025 and August 2026. Records also show a significant increase in arrests of children in the region during 2025. About 73% of those arrested had no criminal record, and more than half had never been charged with any crime beyond immigration violations. Detainees were held at facilities including the Edward Schwartz Federal Building, Otay Mesa, Imperial Regional, and California City detention centers, with some transferred as far as Louisiana and Guantánamo Bay. Advocates and lawmakers, including Rep. Mike Levin and Rep. Juan Vargas, have criticized the enforcement surge.