New data suggests those detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, had very different incarceration and release times depending on the state in which they were picked up.
Detainees legally entitled to be in the United States experienced the longest periods in custody compared to those detained and deported.
The data, released by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) show that in November and December of last year nearly half of all detainees were released from ICE custody within three days, while about 16 percent were detained for up to two months, and a small percentage were held up to six months or longer.
"The average detention days for detainees was 15 days in New Mexico, 16 days in Arizona, 23 days in California, 27 days in Texas, for example," said Susan Long, co-director of TRAC.
Long said New Mexico ranked as the speediest state in the country in terms of the time detainees spent incarcerated.
