The U.S. Border Patrol in Maine says it arrested a record number of people in the fiscal year that ended last month, as the Trump administration pursues aggressive immigration enforcement policies nationwide.
Agents apprehended 725 people in the state, according to a press release, touting the numbers as a matter of public safety.
“This is about more than numbers; it’s about safeguarding national security,” said Houlton Sector Chief Patrol Agent Derrick Stamper, in a written statement.
But Lisa Parisio, with the Immigrant Legal Advocacy Project, said many of those arrested posed no threat.
“Many of the impacted Maine residents who have been in this situation were in lawful immigration processes, they had valid work permits and they had absolutely no criminal record,” she said.
The agency also cites collaboration between federal, state, and local law enforcement as one factor in the increased arrests.
Parisio said that cooperation has funneled a growing number of immigrant residents into federal custody.
“Maine state and local law enforcement pulling people over for minor traffic infractions and other incidents, and then calling Border Patrol and handing them over just based on suspected immigration status alone,” she said.
The legislature earlier this year passed a bill to limit this kind of cooperation, but Gov. Janet Mills did not sign it, instead holding it over until the next legislative session.
Several of those arrested by Border Patrol in Maine this year have since been released, either because federal judges questioned the legal basis for their detentions, or because they were granted bond from immigration detention. Others have been ordered deported.
A Border Patrol spokesperson was not immediately available for comment. The Border Patrol numbers do not include arrests by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
This story appears through a media partnership with Maine Public.