{"id":2574573,"date":"2026-02-27T19:47:01","date_gmt":"2026-02-28T00:47:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dhs-releasing-some-illegal-border-crossers-despite-zero-releases-claims\/"},"modified":"2026-02-27T19:49:03","modified_gmt":"2026-02-28T00:49:03","slug":"dhs-releasing-some-illegal-border-crossers-despite-zero-releases-claims","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/dhs-releasing-some-illegal-border-crossers-despite-zero-releases-claims\/","title":{"rendered":"DHS releasing some illegal border crossers despite &#8216;zero&#8217; releases claims"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fdhs-releasing-some-illegal-border-crossers-despite-zero-releases-claims%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2574573&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>The Washington Examiner reports that over the past nine months, the Department of Homeland Security has released some illegal border crossers into the interior of the United States, contradicting Trump management claims of \u201czero\u201d releases. While Border Patrol arrests are said to be followed by transfers to ICE for detention and removal, several sources say a number of migrants have still been released from DHS custody into the interior, with ICE handling these releases rather than CBP.<\/p>\n<p>Key points:<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; CBP publicly says it has not released any individuals into the interior in that period, but four sources familiar with the releases say DHS has allowed some migrants to continue into the country after processing.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; the releases are described as \u201ccase-by-case\u201d and often involve ICE, sometimes under the agency\u2019s Alternatives to Detention program (which may include ankle monitors).<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The exact number released is not specified, and DHS and ICE did not provide comment. White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson deflected on the zero-releases claim, saying Trump\u2019s border-security record is strong but not addressing that specific assertion.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott defended the administration\u2019s reporting, stating no one released into the interior in the past nine months and asserting the agency\u2019s data aligns with policy and law.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Immigration policy experts cited in the piece suggest such releases can be proper for humanitarian, medical, or logistical reasons and are not necessarily failures, though they acknowledge some releases have occurred despite the administration\u2019s rhetoric.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">DHS releasing some illegal border crossers into US despite claims of &lsquo;zero&rsquo; releases<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_2508399\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>Some immigrants who illegally crossed the U.S.-Mexico border and were arrested by <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/border-patrol\">Border Patrol<\/a> have been released into the United States by the Department of Homeland Security despite the Trump administration&rsquo;s claims that &ldquo;zero&rdquo; releases have occurred over the past nine months, according to four sources aware of the releases.<\/p>\n<p>Although the number of border crossers let into the interior of the country is significantly smaller than it was during the Biden administration, that some illegal immigrants have been released into the U.S. at all appears to contradict President Donald Trump&rsquo;s claim during the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/state-of-the-union\">State of the Union<\/a> address, as well as numerous statements by Homeland Security Secretary <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/kristi-noem\">Kristi Noem<\/a>, that no one had been let in since early last summer.<\/p>\n<div class=\"recommended-stories\">\n<h2>Recommended Stories<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/crime\/4474381\/fbi-parsing-thousand-hours-video-search-nancy-guthrie\/\">FBI parsing through 10,000 hours of video in search for Nancy Guthrie<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/crime\/4473050\/man-arrested-assaulted-nypd-officer-snowball-fight-zohran-mamdani\/\">Man with prior record arrested for assaulting NYPD officer in snowball fight<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/crime\/4469649\/new-hampshire-man-charged-with-attempted-murder-of-border-patrol-agent\/\">New Hampshire man charged with attempted murder of Border Patrol agent<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>&ldquo;In the past nine months, zero illegal aliens have been admitted to the United States,&rdquo; Trump said to a round of applause from lawmakers at the State of the Union on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">In just one year, President Trump&rsquo;s effective immigration and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sen-cotton-republicans-need-to-pursue-president-trumps-america-first-agenda\/\" title=\"Sen. Cotton: Republicans need to pursue ...\u2019s \u2018America First\u2019 agenda\">border security policies<\/a> have led to an all-time-low in illegal crossings at the southern border. The message is clear: America&rsquo;s borders are closed to lawbreakers.<\/p>\n<p>This is just the beginning. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/3ocuVXTAbE\">pic.twitter.com\/3ocuVXTAbE<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Sec_Noem\/status\/2026661039337599394?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">February 25, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>    <\/p>\n<p>Noem stated in <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Sec_Noem\/status\/1986189415245312266\">November<\/a>, <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/newsroom\/national-media-release\/border-crossings-once-again-record-low-november-2025#:~:text=%E2%80%9COnce%2520again%252C%2520we%2520have%2520a,are%2520safer%2520than%2520ever%2520before\">December<\/a>, and <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cbp.gov\/newsroom\/national-media-release\/usbp-records-zero-releases-eighth-consecutive-month\">January<\/a> that &ldquo;zero&rdquo; people who crossed the border and were arrested had been released from custody and permitted to remain in the country.<\/p>\n<p>Noem has also conflated releases with apprehensions. The DHS secretary stated during an August 2025 <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=tXCTa5MM2HA\">press conference<\/a> that &ldquo;we have had &mdash; for three months in a row &mdash; zero <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/texas-gov-abbott-orders-investigation-into-alien-holding-facilities-amid-reports-of-poor-conditions\/\" title=\"Texas Gov. Abbott orders investigation into alien holding facilities amid reports of poor conditions\">illegal aliens entering<\/a> the United States.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Sources did not deny that the Border Patrol, a part of DHS&rsquo;s agency <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/customs-and-border-protection\/\">Customs and Border Protection<\/a>, responsible for initially arresting people, had released anyone.<\/p>\n<p>However, sources said it was DHS&rsquo;s <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/ice\/\">Immigration and Customs Enforcement<\/a> that has and continues to release an unspecified number of people from the border who are turned over to them from Border Patrol. The number of ICE releases under Trump is unclear.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Dirty little secret that the [Trump administration] does not want getting out for obvious reasons,&rdquo; the first source wrote in a text message. &ldquo;There are in fact folks who are being released who recently crossed the border. &hellip; [Border Patrol] is not releasing anyone, but ICE is.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Border Patrol is mandated by federal detention standards to limit the detention of immigrants to 72 hours after an arrest before turning that person over to ICE for longer detention pending removal.<\/p>\n<p>Border Patrol may handle some removals of Mexican nationals, but ICE is responsible for the detention and removal of illegal immigrants.<\/p>\n<p>When people are released by ICE, they are given either a paper that notifies them to appear in immigration court at a certain place and time regarding their unlawful entry or a document requiring them to go to a regional ICE office and notify them that they need to be added to the court docket.<\/p>\n<p>A second source said immigrants who came over the southern border illegally are being released into the U.S. on a &ldquo;case-by-case basis.&rdquo; They continue to be placed into ICE&rsquo;s Alternatives to Detention program, which may require wearing an ankle monitor to track their location while not in custody.<\/p>\n<p>The <em>Washington Examiner <\/em>asked the DHS for comment. The DHS and ICE did not provide comment. White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said Trump&rsquo;s record on the border had netted results but did not comment on his &ldquo;zero&rdquo; releases remark earlier this week.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;President Trump is right &ndash; thanks to his leadership the border has been totally secured in a short period of time,&rdquo; Jackson wrote in an email Friday. &ldquo;Under the Biden Administration, <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\" >countless criminal illegal aliens<\/a> were allowed to flood into the country. The Trump Administration has put an end to illegals being freely released into the interior. The American people are safer because of President Trump.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>CBP provided a statement from its commissioner, Rodney Scott, that stated over the past nine months, &ldquo;CBP has not released a single individual who entered the country illegally into the interior.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The record is clear. We ended the Biden administration&rsquo;s disastrous catch and release policies,&rdquo; Scott said. &ldquo;U.S. Customs and Border Protection stands by the accuracy of the information provided to the American people. Our reporting is grounded in operational data, vetted through established channels, aligned with DHS policy and federal law, and available publicly on CBP&rsquo;s webpage.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Scott, the former national chief of the Border Patrol, added that illegal immigrants in Border Patrol custody may be turned over to another agency or local law enforcement, to ICE, or the Department of Health and Human Services&rsquo; Office of Refugee Resettlement if the person is a child without a parent.<\/p>\n<p>Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, senior fellow at the American Immigration Council in Washington, said ICE&rsquo;s quiet releases over the past nine months were a good sign, because it indicated that <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/new-biden-rule-aims-to-entrench-the-deep-state-forever\/\" title=\"...&#039;s New Rule Seeks to Solidify the Deep State Permanently\">federal employees recognize<\/a> there are cases where detention is not appropriate or possible.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Every administration releases some migrants either because of logistical, diplomatic, or humanitarian reasons, and releases are not failures,&rdquo; Reichlin-Melnick said in a phone call Friday. &ldquo;Some people just shouldn&rsquo;t be held in detention. There&rsquo;s no good reason to do so, especially those with serious humanitarian or medical issues. That some people are still being released is a sign that, at least at the lower levels, the agency still acknowledges this fact despite what the leadership is saying.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/immigration\/4471631\/why-trump-changes-immigration-courts-ramp-up-deportations\/\">WHY TRUMP&rsquo;S CHANGES TO IMMIGRATION COURTS WILL &lsquo;ABSOLUTELY&rsquo; RAMP UP DEPORTATIONS<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Trump imposed a dozen executive actions related to immigration upon taking office in January 2025. The average of 100,000 to 250,<a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/former-cbp-head-biden-administration-is-facilitating-illegal-immigration-into-america\/\" title=\"Former ... Head: ... \u2018Is Facilitating Illegal ...\u2019 Into America\">000 illegal immigrants apprehended<\/a> at the southern border per month during most of the Biden administration tapered down to less than 10,000 apprehensions per month in Trump&rsquo;s first year.<\/p>\n<p>House Republicans estimated that 5.3 million illegal immigrants, including possible asylum-seekers, were let into the U.S. under Biden.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Paraphrase:<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; Four sources familiar with the matter say that the Department of Homeland Security has released some migrants who had been arrested after illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border, despite President Trump\u2019s assertion that there have been \u201czero\u201d such releases over the past nine months. This contradicts Trump\u2019s State of the Union remarks and repeated claims by DHS Secretary Kristi Noem that no one had been released since the previous summer. Although border arrivals are far lower than during the Biden era, any releases at all suggest a gap between public messaging and what\u2019s happening in practice.<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; The releases appear to come from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), not Border Patrol, which handles the initial arrests. The exact number released is not specified. Some migrants are released on a \u201ccase-by-case\u201d basis and may be placed in ICE\u2019s Alternatives to Detention program (often with an ankle monitor). Border Patrol says it detains people for up to 72 hours before handing them off to ICE for longer detention or removal, while ICE is responsible for detention and removal decisions. DHS did not provide comment, and White House spokespeople avoided addressing the specific \u201czero releases\u201d claim. CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott defended the agency\u2019s reporting and said the Biden-era \u201ccatch and release\u201d policies are over. Immigration-policy experts note that, even under Trump, some releases are sometimes necessary on humanitarian or logistical grounds, though the broader impact remains contested.<\/p>\n<p>55-character headline option:<\/p>\n<p>&#8211; DHS releases some border crossers despite zero claim<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2655,"featured_media":2574574,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AP25021554408263.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651,538],"tags":[70102,50410,7492,3813,74773],"class_list":["post-2574573","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","category-washington-examiner","tag-border-security-2","tag-controversy-2","tag-dhs","tag-immigration","tag-releases-claims"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/AP25021554408263.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2574573","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2655"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2574573"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2574573\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2574577,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2574573\/revisions\/2574577"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2574574"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2574573"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2574573"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2574573"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}