If someone you love has been detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, known as ICE, in Michigan, it helps to know that Michigan holds a significant number of immigration detainees within the state. The largest site is the North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin, which reopened in 2025 and is among the largest immigration detention centers in the Midwest, and ICE also uses several county jails around the state. So a person detained in or near Michigan is often held here in Michigan, at least at first. The two most urgent things you can do are find exactly where your person is being held, and get an immigration attorney involved right away.
It helps to understand the nature of this. ICE detention is civil, not criminal. A person is not being held as punishment for a crime; they are being held to secure their presence for immigration proceedings or removal. And unlike criminal court, immigration court does not provide a free, government appointed lawyer, which is why finding legal help early is so important.
One number matters more than anything else through all of this: the Alien Registration Number, called the A-Number. It is a nine digit number assigned to the case, found on immigration paperwork, a work permit, or court notices. Write it down and keep it close, because it follows your person from facility to facility, and it is the key to locating them, posting any bond, and working with a lawyer.
How to find someone in ICE custody
ICE runs a free public tool called the Online Detainee Locator System, at locator.ice.gov. You can search by the A-Number, which is the most reliable way, or by the person's full name plus their country of birth and date of birth.
A few things make the difference between finding your person and coming up empty. The locator only matches names spelled exactly the way the government entered them, so if you get no result, try different spellings, swap the order of first and last names, and try with and without a middle name. Children under 18 do not appear in the system at all. And there can be a lag of a day or more before a newly detained person shows up.
In Michigan, a state run service called VINELink can sometimes show that a person is in a county jail before the ICE locator updates, so it is worth checking too. If you cannot find your person, call the ICE detention reporting line at 1-888-351-4024. Michigan falls under the ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Detroit field office, which can be reached at 313-771-6601, and which can also direct you to the assigned deportation officer.
Where ICE detention happens in Michigan
The largest immigration detention site in Michigan is the North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin, operated by the private prison company GEO Group. It reopened in 2025 and, with roughly 1,800 beds, is among the largest immigration detention centers in the Midwest.
ICE also contracts with several county jails around the state to hold immigration detainees. These include the Calhoun County Correctional Center in Battle Creek, which has held ICE detainees for many years and can be reached at 269-969-6321; the Monroe County Jail; the St. Clair County Jail in Port Huron; and the Chippewa County Correctional Facility in Sault Ste. Marie, in the far north of the state. People are sometimes moved between these facilities, and can be transferred out of state, so always rely on the live locator to confirm where your person actually is.
How someone ends up in ICE custody in Michigan
Cooperation between Michigan law enforcement and ICE grew in 2025. Until recently, no Michigan agencies had formal 287(g) agreements, which let local officers carry out certain immigration functions. As of 2025, several county sheriff's offices and a city police department had signed such agreements, most under a model that trains jail staff to identify people with immigration detainers and hold them for ICE. Several county jails also contract with ICE to house detainees.
When a person is booked into a county jail, ICE can place a detainer, also called an ICE hold, which is a request to keep the person for up to 48 hours beyond their normal release so ICE can take custody. That is a common way a local arrest becomes an immigration detention, though cooperation varies from county to county. If your person was first arrested locally, ask the attorney exactly how they came into ICE custody, because the circumstances can matter to the case.
How the process and your person's rights work
Immigration cases are handled in immigration court, run by a separate agency called the Executive Office for Immigration Review, not by ICE. Michigan has an immigration court in the Detroit area, and hearings for detained people are often conducted by video from the facility. You can check case status through the court's automated system using the A-Number.
Here is what families most need to know about rights. A detained person has the right to be represented by a lawyer, but at their own expense, because the government does not provide one in immigration proceedings. They have the right to a list of free or low cost legal service providers. They generally have the right to a hearing before an immigration judge, and in many cases the right to ask that judge for release on bond. Some people are eligible for bond, which a judge can set and which can then be paid for release while the case continues; others fall under mandatory detention and are not eligible. One more thing worth knowing: a detained person should not sign documents giving up their rights, such as a voluntary departure form, without talking to a lawyer first.
How families can help from the outside
Find a lawyer first. Michigan has experienced immigration attorneys and nonprofit legal organizations, including the Michigan Immigrant Rights Center, which works with detained people across the state, and detainees at the main facilities can often call it for free. Have the A-Number ready when you call.
Track any transfer. Keep checking the locator, and VINELink, so you always know which facility your person is in, since money, phone, mail, and visitation all depend on where they are at that moment.
Learn each facility's system. The rules for adding money, phone calls, and visits differ between North Lake and each county jail. For example, some facilities accept money orders by mail and limit visits to a set number each week, with non contact visits and identification required. Call the specific facility to confirm how its system works.
Keep the paperwork organized. Hold onto every document with the A-Number, every court notice, and every receipt, and share copies with the attorney.
Staying connected matters more than anything
Through all of the logistics, do not underestimate the simple power of staying in touch. Detention is isolating and frightening, especially for someone held far from home, such as at a facility in the far north of the state or out of state entirely, and steady contact from home is one of the few things that genuinely helps a person hold on.
Letters and photos are the backbone of that connection. They are something your person can keep, read again on a hard night, and hold as proof that home has not let go, and they can follow your person from one facility to the next. InmateAid can help you send physical mail and photos to your loved one, printed and delivered the right way so it reaches them inside. Use it to send pictures of family, words of encouragement, or simply a reminder that someone is fighting for them on the outside. That steady contact, alongside a good lawyer, is the most practical support you can give while the case moves forward.
Frequently asked questions
Where does ICE detain people in Michigan?
The largest site is the North Lake Processing Center in Baldwin, a GEO Group facility with roughly 1,800 beds that reopened in 2025. ICE also uses several county jails, including the Calhoun County Correctional Center in Battle Creek, the Monroe County Jail, the St. Clair County Jail in Port Huron, and the Chippewa County Correctional Facility in Sault Ste. Marie.
How do I find someone detained by ICE in Michigan?
Use the free Online Detainee Locator System at locator.ice.gov, searching by the nine digit A-Number or by full name, country of birth, and date of birth. In Michigan, the VINELink service can sometimes show a county jail booking before the ICE locator updates. If you cannot find them, call the ICE detention reporting line at 1-888-351-4024. People under 18 do not appear in the locator.
Does Michigan cooperate with ICE?
It varies. Until recently, no Michigan agencies had 287(g) agreements, but as of 2025 several county sheriff's offices and a city police department had signed them, and several county jails contract with ICE to hold detainees. A local arrest can lead to immigration custody, though practices differ by county.
Can someone be released from ICE detention on bond?
Sometimes. An immigration judge can set bond for people who are eligible, and it can then be paid for release while the case continues. Others are subject to mandatory detention and cannot get bond. An immigration attorney can determine which applies.
How do I send money or visit someone in a Michigan ICE facility?
The rules depend on the facility. Some county jails accept money orders by mail and allow a limited number of non contact visits each week, with valid identification required and visitors usually 17 or older. Call the specific facility, whether North Lake or a county jail, to confirm its current money, phone, and visitation rules before you go.
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