In 2014, then-DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson
announced that the administration would focus on removing undocumented immigrants with criminal records. This would exclude DACA members since to qualify, individuals cannot be “convicted of a felony, a significant misdemeanor, three or more other misdemeanors,” or “pose a threat to national security or public safety.” U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services, which grants DACA status,
advises Customs and Border Patrol and ICE to “exercise their discretion on a case-by-case basis to prevent qualifying individuals from being apprehended, placed into removal proceedings, or removed.” DHS Secretary John Kelly has said his agency is
not targeting DACA recipients, though some have been arrested in recent weeks.