Trump had campaigned heavily<\/a> on \u201cclosing the border.\u201d And so he did.<\/p>\n The difference is staggering one year later.<\/p>\n Data from the latest monthly report<\/a> by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows a 92% decrease in migrant apprehensions by Border Patrol along San Diego County\u2019s border with Mexico in December compared to the same period in 2024. Tijuana shelters have seen this significant drop firsthand.<\/p>\n Recently, the Juventud 2000 shelter was housing 10 migrants who had fled violence in their hometowns in Mexico. According to Garc\u00eda, none of them intended to cross into the U.S.; instead, they were planning to settle in Tijuana. Around this time last year, the shelter had about 80 people<\/a> \u201cstill waiting to see what might happen.\u201d<\/p>\n It didn\u2019t take long to confirm the incoming administration\u2019s plans.<\/p>\n On his first day in office, Trump ended<\/a> the CBP One system, under which nearly 1 million<\/a> migrants were allowed to enter the country with parole. He also signed a series of executive orders<\/a>, including plans to build additional barriers and deploy troops along the southern border.<\/p>\n \u201cI think the message sent by the United States was well understood,\u201d Garc\u00eda said.<\/p>\n Some families initially stayed at the shelter a little longer, hoping that another legal way to apply for asylum would be announced. Not only did that not happen, but quite the opposite \u2014 efforts to crack down on immigration escalated, both along the U.S.-Mexico border and throughout the interior.<\/p>\n With videos all over social media showing immigration detentions in the U.S., many migrants changed their plans.<\/p>\n Tijuana grew quiet. The action was now unfolding north of the border.<\/p>\n \u2018A game changer\u2019\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Throughout most of 2024, the 60-mile stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border in the San Diego sector was the busiest<\/a> for migrant apprehensions. In December 2024, there were 10,111 migrant encounters by Border Patrol. Compare that to 855 apprehensions last month.\u00a0Officials noted<\/a>\u00a0that such low levels of activity have not been seen in the sector since the 1960s.<\/p>\n \u201cIn just one year, President Donald J. Trump\u2019s ironclad commitment to securing our border and enforcing our nation\u2019s laws is liberating Americans from the crushing burden of unchecked illegal immigration,\u201d the White House said in a news release last week.<\/p>\n Border Patrol\u2019s San Diego Sector Chief Justin De La Torre attributed the steep decline in part to the end of a \u201ccatch-and-release\u201d border policy. Previously, migrants, many of them asylum seekers, were processed by Border Patrol and later released to await their immigration court hearings. Nowadays, a Border Patrol spokesperson explained, Mexican nationals who aren\u2019t expelled immediately through Tijuana are held in custody pending their hearings. Depending on flight availability, people could also be flown to southern Mexican towns.<\/p>\n De La Torre, who was tapped as the new sector chief<\/a> in November, called it<\/a> \u201ca game changer.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cBy no longer releasing people into the U.S., we have removed the incentive for those considering illegal entry via smuggling routes,\u201d he said in a statement<\/a>. \u201cWe no longer have people illegally entering and surrendering to agents, expecting to be released, which allows Border Patrol agents to return to patrol and interdiction efforts rather than processing and releasing hundreds of illegal aliens a day.\u201d<\/p>\n Reinforced border wall infrastructure<\/a> and collaborations with other agencies, including the military, have also helped, he said. Under the Trump administration, troops, including Marines from Camp Pendleton, were deployed to provide engineering support to the Border Patrol. Miles of concertina wire<\/a> were installed along the primary and secondary fences of the U.S.-Mexico border wall.<\/p>\n De La Torre also acknowledged the increased likelihood of individuals being prosecuted for illegal entry.<\/p>\n In fiscal 2025, the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office for the Southern District of California prosecuted 2,021 unlawful-entry cases, up from 256 the previous year, according to data from the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office. Federal prosecutors in the office, which covers San Diego and Imperial counties, also prosecuted 1,098 cases for reentry after deportation, up from 525 the prior year. The data showed that prosecutions for both unlawful entry and reentry were continuing at roughly the same pace through the first three months of fiscal 2026.<\/p>\n Garc\u00eda, who runs the Juventud 2000 shelter, noted that while the number of migrant encounters remains low, some migrants are still trying to cross the border by taking more dangerous routes. Garcia pointed to cases in which people have been injured or killed in maritime smuggling incidents<\/a> off the coast of San Diego and\u00a0from falling<\/a> from the U.S.-Mexico border fence.<\/p>\n De La Torre said in an interview last month that smugglers are turning to social media to recruit people and are lying to them, telling them that the agency is \u201callowing people in again\u201d or that they can \u201cclaim asylum,\u201d to convince migrants to use their services.<\/p>\n \u2018Enforce immigration law without apology\u2019<\/p>\n Immigration enforcement, for years typically concentrated at the border fence and out of the eye of the general public, quickly became a spectacle on city streets. San Diegans were soon witnessing immigration detentions by masked agents in their neighborhoods \u2014 during school drop-off, at parks, in the parking lots of Home Depot, outside workplaces such as hotels and construction sites.<\/p>\n Watching Trump\u2019s mass deportation campaign play out in the open stunned many onlookers. Some fought back, including a crowd that gathered in protest during an immigration raid<\/a> at South Park\u2019s Buona Forchetta restaurant just before Friday dinner service in May.<\/p>\n From January to mid-October last year, Immigration and Customs Enforcement\u2019s San Diego field office, which covers San Diego and Imperial counties, made 4,934 arrests, dwarfing the 764 arrests made in all of 2024, according to data from the agency obtained\u00a0via public information request\u00a0by the Deportation Data Project<\/a>\u00a0and analyzed by the Union-Tribune. In September alone, the San Diego division made more than 1,400 arrests.<\/p>\n The data documents administrative immigration arrests made by ICE\u2019s Enforcement and Removal Operations, which is the agency\u2019s main arm responsible for enforcing immigration policy.<\/p>\n Arrests made in the community, such as street or workplace arrests, have become far more common under Trump. From January to mid-October last year, the San Diego ICE division made about 4,000 such arrests, compared to fewer than 400 the previous year, according to the data. Community arrests accounted for about 80% of all local ICE arrests in 2025, up from 51% the previous year.<\/p>\n Community patrols and bystanders also documented an increase in the number of Border Patrol agents working alongside ICE during immigration enforcement operations.<\/p>\n \u201cThere was an increase in activity beyond the border,\u201d said Benjamin Prado, who has been part of community patrols dedicated to monitoring the activity of federal agents in San Diego neighborhoods with the nonprofit organization Uni\u00f3n del Barrio for many years. \u201cWe saw the role the Border Patrol is taking inside the United States. It\u2019s not just ICE anymore.\u201d<\/p>\n Federal officials in San Diego confirmed this<\/a> late last year. As once-busy border crossings slowed down, Border Patrol agents were able to increase their presence in interior operations.<\/p>\n Most people arrested by San Diego\u2019s ICE division had no criminal charges pending and no criminal convictions, according to ICE\u2019s data. That was 59% of arrests from January to mid-October last year, compared to 40% the previous\u00a0year.<\/p>\n Immigration advocates have said that they believe the data<\/a> indicate that the increase in arrests is a response to the agency trying to fill an arrest quota, rather than targeting \u201cthe worst of the worst,\u201d as the Trump administration has repeatedly claimed.<\/p>\n Tom Homan, the White House\u2019s \u201cborder czar,\u201d addressed the matter<\/a> during a recent visit to San Diego. He insisted that those arrested were in the country illegally, which violates federal law, and that the agencies involved are enforcing that law. \u201cWe\u2019re going to enforce immigration law without apology,\u201d he said at a Dec. 13 news conference<\/a> at the San Diego border.<\/p>\n \u2018You\u2019re no longer free\u2019<\/p>\n Fear has gripped immigrant communities in San Diego, even those with legal status. Many with green cards or U.S. citizenship started to carry documents<\/a> with them, just in case.<\/p>\n Rhythms of life changed more dramatically for others.<\/p>\n One longtime Escondido resident, who has resided in the U.S. without authorization for decades, says she rarely leaves the house anymore.<\/p>\n \u201cIf I go to the store, I\u2019m looking around everywhere,\u201d she said in Spanish. She asked not to be named for fear of repercussions.<\/p>\n She made a living as a nanny for years, but she stopped doing that nearly a year ago. She said she no longer felt safe taking the children she cared for to the park or school. She said she doesn\u2019t want to expose them to the possibility of seeing her get detained.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s sad because you\u2019re no longer free,\u201d she said. \u201cYou\u2019re not free to go out, walk in the park, or go out for ice cream.\u201d<\/p>\n The mother of two grown U.S. citizens first came to the U.S. from Mexico more than 30 years ago in search of a better life. She was deported years later and settled in Tijuana for a while. But when her niece died, she returned to support her sister, she said.<\/p>\n The woman, who has also been a community volunteer, said she understands that she must \u201crespect the laws,\u201d but she added that \u201csometimes necessity forces us to be here.\u201d She said she has considered going back to Mexico, but the thought of being away from her daughters makes her hesitate.<\/p>\n \u2018Up-the-mountain battle\u2019<\/p>\n Federal agents were not just targeting people in hiding. A new front line<\/a> emerged in the hallways outside immigration courtrooms or during check-ins with ICE at the Edward J. Schwartz building in downtown San Diego. Several people showed up to what they thought would be their final green card interviews<\/a> at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services building and ended up being detained by waiting agents.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is in line with their policy priorities to achieve some sort of mass deportation,\u201d said San Diego-based immigration attorney Ginger Jacobs. \u201cAnd what easier way to detain people or try to deport people than to have them come to you?\u201d<\/p>\n In response, community volunteers, including faith leaders, teamed up with other local organizations to document and accompany immigrants<\/a> to their scheduled appointments at these locations. The number of trained volunteers went from<\/a> approximately 80 in August to 465 by the end of December, said the Rev. Scott Santarosa of Our Lady of Guadalupe parish in Logan Heights.<\/p>\n Immigration attorneys were faced with heavier workloads and curveballs as the Trump administration redefined battle lines.<\/p>\n \u201cEvery single week, we are faced with a new policy, a new rule that either erodes due process or puts more hardship on our clients,\u201d said Ian Seruelo, an immigration attorney for more than 10 years and chair of the San Diego Immigrant Rights Consortium.<\/p>\n Some, like Seruelo, have filed more habeas petitions<\/a> than ever before, challenging the legality of their clients\u2019 detentions, given Trump administration guidance<\/a> to put those who entered the country without inspection into mandatory detention and not allow bond hearings.<\/p>\n However, late last year, a federal judge in California ruled against<\/a> such a policy after a federal class-action lawsuit. Another lawsuit<\/a> filed by Al Otro Lado claims that the Trump administration has shut down access to asylum at ports of entry along the U.S.-Mexico border.<\/p>\n While wider efforts are being made through lawsuits to stop certain policies, immigration attorneys continue to fight\u00a0on a micro level inside the immigration courts, Seruelo said.<\/p>\n Jacobs, who has been an immigration attorney for 24 years, compared the past year to an \u201cup-the-mountain battle.\u201d Still, she believes there is hope within the courtrooms.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Trump administration wants people to think everyone\u2019s losing, everyone\u2019s being detained, everyone\u2019s being deported, so that they\u2019ll give up,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople are still becoming naturalized U.S. citizens, people are still getting their green cards, people are still winning their cases in court,\u201d she said. \u201cIt\u2019s harder than it used to be, but it\u2019s not impossible, and I don\u2019t want the community to lose hope.\u201d<\/p>\n Staff writers Kristen Taketa and Alex Riggins contributed to this report.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Tents are still set up inside the Juventud 2000 shelter in Tijuana, ready to provide migrants with a…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":138933,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[14,181,23,100,74,76,75,1696],"class_list":{"0":"post-138932","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-diego","8":"tag-immigration","9":"tag-latest-headlines","10":"tag-local-news","11":"tag-news","12":"tag-san-diego","13":"tag-san-diego-headlines","14":"tag-san-diego-news","15":"tag-top-stories-sdut"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138932","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=138932"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138932\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/138933"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=138932"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=138932"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=138932"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Volunteers](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/sut-l-border-changes-0118-20.jpg\")
Volunteers hand out water and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches to more than 60 migrants who arrived to a camp just off Interstate 8, where they waited to be processed by U.S. Border Patrol on March 15, 2024, outside Jacumba Hot Springs. People came from Pakistan, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Bolivia, Honduras, Egypt, Somalia and other countries. (Ana Ramirez \/ U-T file)<\/p>\n![\"Edgar](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/sut-l-border-changes-0118-10.jpg\")
Edgar Villanueva and his wife, Karen Garcia, along with their baby boy, Nain Villanueva Garcia, have been living at the Juventud 2000 shelter in Tijuana since late 2025. They were among 10 people from Mexico staying there. The other tents, which a year ago were full, now sit mostly empty. (Nelvin C. Cepeda \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n![\"U.S.](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/SUT-L-TROOPS-TOUR-6.jpg\")
U.S. Marine Corps Task Force Sapper adds concertina wire to the U.S.-Mexico border walls on March 12 in Otay Mesa. (Ana Ramirez \/ U-T file)<\/p>\n![\"White](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/sut-l-border-visit_003.jpg\")
White House \u201cborder czar\u201d Tom Homan and U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Rodney Scott speak during a press conference along the U.S.-Mexico border wall in San Ysidro on Dec. 13. (Sandy Huffaker \/ For The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/SUT-L-COURT-ARRESTS-01.jpg\")
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers conduct arrests outside the immigration courtrooms in San Diego on May 23. (Michael Ho Wai Lee \/ Sipa via AP Images)<\/p>\n![\"Clergymen](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/sut-l-ice-vigil_001.jpg\")
Clergy members and worshipers hold a candlelight vigil for immigrants on Nov. 13 outside the federal building in downtown San Diego. (Sandy Huffaker \/ For The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n