Immigrants and Crime in the United States

by Explainer

Migration Policy Institute

Immigrants in the United States commit crimes at lower rates than the U.S.-born population, not-with-standing the assertion by critics that immigration is linked to higher rates of criminal activity. This reality of reduced criminality, which holds across immigrant groups including unauthorized immigrants, has been demonstrated through research as well as findings for the one state in the United States—Texas—that tracks criminal arrests and convictions by immigration status.

A growing volume of research demonstrates that not only do immigrants commit fewer crimes, but they also do not raise crime rates in the U.S. communities where they settle. In fact, some studies indicate immigration can lower criminal activity, especially violent crime, in places with inclusive policies and social environments where immigrant populations are well established.

A Look at the Overall Immigrant Population

Immigrants Are Prosecuted and Imprisoned at Lower Rates than the U.S. Born

Immigrants in the United States have had lower incarceration rates than the native-born population since at least 1870 (when such data were first recorded). In 2020, immigrants were 60 percent less likely to be incarcerated than the U.S. born, according to a study by the National Bureau of Economic Research.

At the state level, multiple studies have found there is no clear relationship between violent crime and immigration. And research at the city level suggests that increases in immigration can be associated with declining homicide rates, with the largest effect on municipalities with long histories of immigration, as well as reductions in property crimes and robbery. 

A Unique Data Snapshot: Immigrants and Crime in Texas

Texas represents a unique laboratory to study immigrants and criminality because it is the only state recording criminal arrests and convictions by immigration status. A 2020 federal study based on Texas Department of Public Safety data found that immigrants of all legal statuses were arrested at:

• Less than half the rate of U.S.-born citizens for violent and drug crimes
• One-quarter of the rate of the U.S. born for property crimes

Unauthorized immigrants in Texas by far had the lowest offending rates compared to the U.S. born and lawfully present immigrants:

Reports of general crime rates in border states and many interior cities that have received large numbers of recent arrivals from the U.S.-Mexico border also show an overall downtrend in criminal activity year over year. 

Periods of high border arrivals tax its existing capacity and infrastructure. The Border Patrol performs necessary security screening and vetting procedures for individuals encountered unlawfully crossing into the United States. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) inspector general reported. In cases where migrants lack government-issued identification, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers may accept self-reported biographical information to conduct record checks, vetting, and a comprehensive risk classification assessment of an individual’s threat to national security before making a determination on detention or release.

AB: Trump blame crimes on immigrants crossing into the US. He blames them for FEMA running out of funding. Vance faults migrants and immigration for economic issues. But the story is somewhat different.