HPD ICE report: People detained an average of 46 minutes

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- A quarterly report shows that the Houston Police Department is detaining people an average of 46 minutes during immigration encounters, and in some cases turning them over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

This is all according to a new report released on Wednesday, required under city ordinance.

The report showed that HPD called ICE 88 times between July and the end of September 2026. Only 17 people were arrested by ICE, as they had immigration warrants.

One of those encounters was associated with a child sex assault report.

The report also showed that HPD ended up releasing 58 people; 13 others were sent to jail on charges unrelated to immigration.

However, disagreements remain over whether local police departments can detain people solely on an immigration warrant, since those warrants are civil and enforcement is up to the federal government.

The city pointed out that HPD had contact with nearly 293,000 people over that three-month period.