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Todd Lyons, acting director of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), announced this Thursday his resignation effective at the end of May, amidst a storm of criticism over the unprecedented rise in deaths under immigration custody and the impact of lethal operations that resulted in the deaths of two American citizens.
Lyons communicated his decision in a letter addressed to the Secretary of Homeland Security, Markwayne Mullin, in which he described it as a "tremendous honor" to have led the agency, but explained that family reasons are leading him to take this step.
"My children are reaching a crucial moment in their lives, and my wife and I want to spend as much time as possible with them. This has not been an easy decision, but I believe it is the right one for me and my family at this time," Lyons wrote in the letter, reviewed by The New York Times.
Lyons, who joined ICE in 2007 as an agent in Dallas and also served in the Air Force and as a police officer, will move to the private sector after leaving the position.
Trump had appointed him interim director in March 2025, after Caleb Vitello was reassigned from the position.
Her departure shakes the leadership of an agency with more than 27,400 employees during one of its most controversial moments.
A study published this Thursday in the medical journal JAMA revealed that the mortality rate in ICE detention centers reached 88.9 deaths per 100,000 detainees during the fiscal year 2026, the highest level in 22 years, even surpassing the peak recorded during the COVID-19 pandemic, which stood at 75.6 per 100,000 in 2020.
Since the beginning of Trump's second term in January 2025, at least 47 people have died in ICE custody, with 16 fatalities occurring in just the first few months of 2026.
The daily population of detainees reached a historic record of over 73,400 people, exacerbated by overcrowding in 24 commercial warehouses converted into detention centers.
Nearly 49% of the deaths were categorized as "undetermined or unclassified," according to the same study, which complicates accountability.
The doctors Michele Heisler and Katherine R. Peeler published an editorial in JAMA highlighting "long-standing failures" exacerbated by policies that increased arrests to historic levels, "weakened oversight mechanisms, and worsened confinement conditions."
Peeler warned NBC News that the death rate has surged in the past year and a half and that "unfortunately, we are only midway through April of this year."
The most significant scandal that marked Lyons' term was the deadly shooting of two American citizens in Minneapolis.
Renée Nicole Good, 37 years old and mother of three, was shot on January 7 by Officer Jonathan Ross during Operation Metro Surge.
On January 24, 37-year-old Alex Jeffrey Pretti, an intensive care nurse who worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs, was shot by Border Patrol agents.
Both cases sparked massive protests and calls for reform. In a tense congressional hearing in February, Lyons responded to his critics with a direct warning: "Let no one think they can intimidate us. They will fail."
Despite the controversies, key figures in the Trump administration rallied behind Lyons.
The border czar Tom Homan emphasized that under his leadership "ICE achieved a record number of deportations in the first year of this administration, despite unprecedented challenges."
The advisor Stephen Miller described him as "an exceptional patriot and a dedicated leader who has been at the forefront of President Trump's historic efforts to secure our homeland."
Lyons's resignation comes just weeks after Mullin took office as Secretary of Homeland Security, following the dismissal of Kristi Noem.
Mullin will now have the task of finding a successor for the agency while the FBI investigates the death of the Cuban Geraldo Lunas Campos, 55 years old, who passed away on January 3 at the Camp East Montana facility in Fort Bliss, Texas, whose autopsy classified as death by strangulation.
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