A CBS News interview about deaths in ICE custody took a sharp turn when Tom Homan asked the correspondent pressing him for a comparison from the Biden administration. The exchange did not settle the larger question of detention deaths, but it put a basic data problem on screen: the reporter had a current figure and no Biden-era total.
The number CBS put to Homan
Camilo Montoya-Galvez said official ICE data showed that 57 people had died in the agency’s custody so far under the current administration. He also said another death had just been reported and warned that 2026 could set a new record if the pace continued. Montoya-Galvez acknowledged that the administration was detaining more people, but argued that a larger detainee population could not be the only explanation. That placed the focus on what the Trump administration was doing to prevent deaths. The concern is serious. People have died in custody, and the issue calls for careful reporting and complete comparisons.
Homan turns to Biden-era data
Homan answered the question with one of his own: How many people died in custody during the Biden administration? After a silence, Montoya-Galvez replied, “A significant number.” Homan asked again, but the correspondent still did not provide a figure. Montoya-Galvez returned to the claim that 2026 could become the highest year if the pace continued. Homan repeated his question once more, and Montoya-Galvez finally acknowledged that he did not have the data. Homan responded, “Of course you don’t.” He then called the original question loaded and said it reflected bias against the Trump administration.
Homan’s defense of ICE detention
Homan also defended ICE’s detention standards. He said the agency has the highest standards in the industry, higher than any state or federal institution, and said deaths in ICE custody are among the lowest of any state prison or the Bureau of Prisons. He attributed the increased number of deaths in part to a larger detainee population, saying the number in custody had doubled and was around 74,000 “the other day.” Homan added that many detainees come from third-world nations and may encounter ICE doctors as their first medical providers. He said those doctors sometimes find serious conditions the detainees did not know about and treat them.
WE’D LOVE TO HEAR YOUR THOUGHTS! PLEASE COMMENT BELOW.
Leave a Comment