Maine Governor Janet Mills has issued a public demand for federal immigration authorities to “show the warrants” when conducting arrests of immigrants in the state. This statement came during a press conference on Thursday as the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) increased its enforcement activities in Maine. Mills emphasized that any warrants for arrests should be accessible public records, underscoring the need for transparency in law enforcement operations.
The governor’s remarks followed reports of at least 50 arrests made by ICE this week, primarily focused on the areas of Lewiston and Greater Portland. The operation, referred to as “Catch of the Day,” reportedly aims for a quota of 1,400 arrests, a figure Mills described as “pretty broad.” She voiced her concerns about the implications of such a large-scale operation, stating, “You know in America, we don’t believe in secret arrests or secret police… It’s one of the foundations of our country and our Constitution.”
Mills also noted a lack of specific information regarding the nature of ICE’s operation, revealing that while some arrested individuals had criminal records, others appeared to have none and were legally residing in the state. This uncertainty has sparked anxiety among families, schools, and the business community, prompting Mills to question the rationale behind the agency’s actions. She expressed skepticism about the likelihood of ICE finding 1,400 wanted criminals in Maine’s immigrant population, arguing that immigrants are not more prone to criminal behavior than native-born citizens.
A study conducted in 2024 by the National Institutes for Justice analyzed data from the Texas Department of Public Safety over a six-year period. It found that undocumented immigrants were arrested for violent and drug-related crimes at less than half the rate of native-born U.S. citizens, and at a quarter the rate for property crimes.
The reasons for ICE’s intensified focus on Maine remain unclear. Governor Mills has indicated that the agency has not provided her or the state’s congressional delegation with any explanations. This operation follows the Trump administration’s recent deployment of agents to Minneapolis amid a welfare and Medicaid fraud scandal connected to Minnesota’s Somali community, raising further questions about the targeting of immigrant groups.
Maine’s Somali population, many of whom have gained citizenship since their arrival in the early 2000s or are U.S.-born, forms a significant part of the Lewiston and Portland communities. As concerns about the current ICE operations grow, the governor’s call for accountability reflects a broader demand for transparency and fairness in immigration enforcement.
