“We looked at official ICE data, sir, and found that 57 people have died in the agency’s custody so far under this administration,” Montoya-Galvez said during the interview.
“In fact, somebody was just reported to have died in ICE custody today by the agency; 2026 could set a new record high in the number of detainees dying. What is being done to prevent that? And I know one partial explanation is that more people are being detained and, so tragically, more people are dying. But that can’t be the only explanation, can it be?”
The question immediately put Homan in a position to defend the administration. But rather than simply accept the premise, Homan turned the question back on the reporter.
His response exposed what appeared to be a significant hole in the journalist’s line of questioning.
Homan asked Montoya-Galvez a straightforward question: How many people died in ICE custody during the Biden administration?
The reporter hesitated.
Homan asked again.
“How many people died during the Biden administration?”
Still, Montoya-Galvez did not provide a number.
The exchange became increasingly uncomfortable as the CBS reporter attempted to redirect the conversation toward the Trump administration’s numbers.
Finally, after being pressed again, Montoya-Galvez acknowledged that he did not have the Biden-era figure in front of him.
“I don’t have the data here.”
Homan immediately seized on the omission.
“Of course you don’t,” Homan responded. “Again, it’s another loaded question against the Trump administration.”
The moment quickly circulated online because of the obvious contrast: The reporter arrived prepared with detailed figures concerning deaths during Trump’s presidency but apparently did not have comparable information regarding the previous administration.
That matters because raw numbers can be extremely misleading without context.
If a government agency is holding substantially more people in custody, the number of deaths alone does not necessarily establish that detention conditions have deteriorated. To determine whether there has been misconduct or negligence, investigators would need to examine the causes of death, medical histories, detention conditions, available treatment and other relevant circumstances.
Homan addressed precisely that point when defending ICE’s detention system.
“We have the highest detention standards in industry, higher than any state or federal institution. Our deaths in custody … are among the lowest of any state prison or Bureau of Prisons. Numbers are up because our population has doubled in custody. We got over 70 — I think the other day we had like 74,000 in custody,” he said.
“So we have more people in custody, and we’re dealing with people from third-world nations,” he added.
Homan also argued that ICE’s medical system sometimes identifies serious conditions that detainees were unaware they had.
“Some of the first doctors they see are our doctors. And matter of fact, no one ever talks about how many lives that ICE saves in detention when they found a serious medical issue that the alien didn’t even know about and we treat. When I was ICE director, I think we spent almost a billion dollars on medical care.”
Homan acknowledged the seriousness of any death occurring in federal custody but rejected the suggestion that the administration is indifferent to detainee welfare.
“Again, it’s unfortunate, and it’s sad when anybody dies. I don’t want to see anybody die, but we do everything we can to give them the best medical care that we can provide. And again, highest detention standards,” Homan continued.
“I think if you look at deaths in custody compared to state prisons or federal penitentiaries, I think we’re one of the lowest. At least the last time I looked at the data — it was probably a couple years ago — we’re the lowest.”
There is another number that deserves attention.
According to the National Immigrant Justice Center, 23 people had died in ICE custody during the Biden administration as of September 2024. Three additional deaths were subsequently reported, bringing that total to 26.
That figure does not automatically prove that the Biden administration had better or worse detention conditions than the Trump administration. But it does demonstrate why comparisons require more than simply announcing the number of deaths under one president.
The Biden administration detained fewer people in many periods because immigration enforcement was substantially less aggressive. Trump, by contrast, has made interior enforcement and detention a central component of his immigration agenda.
That means the size and composition of the detained population are critical pieces of the story.
If CBS News or any other outlet believes ICE is failing to provide adequate medical care or maintaining unacceptable detention conditions, those allegations should be investigated aggressively. Evidence of abuse, negligence or misconduct should absolutely be reported.
But journalism requires consistency.
A reporter who cites a death total under one administration should also be prepared to discuss the comparable figure under the previous administration. Otherwise, viewers are left with only half of the picture.
The exchange between Homan and Montoya-Galvez ultimately became less about the number of deaths and more about whether the media applies the same standard to different administrations.
And that is precisely why the awkward moment went viral.
Homan did not deny that people have died in ICE custody. He acknowledged the tragedy and explained that the agency’s detained population has expanded dramatically.
What he challenged was the implication that a rising death count, standing alone, proves that ICE is deliberately mistreating detainees.
For critics of Trump’s immigration policies, that distinction may be inconvenient.
For anyone genuinely interested in the facts, however, it is essential.
