According to a short article in the the Grand Rapids Press, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested 76 people in the month of March. In the article, ICE spokesperson Greg Palmore says that the arrested were "alleged criminal aliens, fugitives and other immigration violators" and that the arrests were the product of targeted operations. According to ICE, 55 of the 76 people arrested have criminal convictions for "offenses including assault and criminal sexual conduct." While the article touts the arrest of immigrants who were committed serious crimes such as criminal sexual conduct and assault, questions have been raised about some of those targeted locally, as some people guilty of minor civil immigration violations were aggressively detained by ICE agents. The Press also reports 133 immigrants in West Michigan were arrested in January.

Such raids are commonplace around the country, with ICE officials frequently raiding homes and workplaces and detaining large numbers of immigrants. Immigrant rights groups have raised concerns about ICE's conduct around the country, arguing that raids terrorize the immigrant community by making them live in a constant state of fear and frequently separate families. Further ore, the raids advance the idea that immigrants are dangerous criminals, despite studies showing that less crimes are committed by immigrants than native-born populations. In response to the increased frequency of ICE raids, groups such as the National Immigration Law Center have prepared "know your rights" materials (Spanish) to help immigrants and their allies prepare for raids. Similarly, the Detention Watch Network has been documenting the close to 200 prison-like facilities around the United States in which as many as 27,000 immigrants are detained each day.