Law Enforcement Support Center

The center protects and defends the US by sharing timely and relevant ICE information with our law enforcement partners around the world.

The Law Enforcement Support Center is a national enforcement operations facility administered by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the largest investigative agency in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The center is a single national point of contact that provides timely immigration status, identity information, and real-time assistance to local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies on aliens suspected, arrested, or convicted of criminal activity. The center protects and defends the United States by sharing timely and relevant ICE information with our law enforcement partners around the world.

Located in Williston, Vermont, the center operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. The primary users of the center are state and local law enforcement officers seeking information regarding aliens encountered in the course of their daily enforcement activities. The center serves as a national enforcement operations center, responding to inquiries from federal, state, and local criminal justice agencies concerning aliens under investigation or arrested.

• National Crime Information Center – The Law Enforcement Support Center administers and validates all ICE criminal and administrative records in this nationwide law enforcement consortium and criminal database.
• Communications Center – The Law Enforcement Support Center operates a communications center that provides the National Crime Information Center hit confirmations (within 10 minutes) to law enforcement agencies 24 hours a day, seven days a week. In addition, center officers and specialists place immigration detainers on aliens suspected of residing in the country unlawfully. The communications center also performs instant immigration status checks for ICE Officers and provides telephonic assistance to local law enforcement agencies performing immigration alien queries.
• Special Response Tasks – The Law Enforcement Support Center is the central point of contact for a number of special information requests.  For example, the center conducts "Brady checks" for the FBI's National Instant Criminal Background Check System, screening the immigration status of foreign-born, non-citizen firearm permit applicants before authorizing purchase or possession of a weapon. The center provides daily assistance to the U.S. Secret Service by assisting in the screening of persons seeking to visit or work on the White House grounds, and it also investigates ICE detainee claims to U.S. citizenship and certain urgent requests for relief when removal is imminent.
• Law Enforcement Training – The center offers an on-site training and outreach program that provides instruction on how to access Law Enforcement Support Center information and instruction on ICE's role and responsibilities.

Significant Accomplishments for FY 2015

• The number of biometric and biographic inquires received at the Law Enforcement Support Center totaled more than 1.46 million law enforcement agency requests for identity and immigration status information, setting a new record for assistance to other law enforcement agencies.
• During Fiscal Year 2015, agents at the center placed 4,915 detainers on aliens suspected of immigration violations.
• In Fiscal Year 2015, the LESC managed more than 283,900 National Crime Information Center system records of Criminal Warrants generated by ICE, previously deported aggravated felons, and immigration fugitives.
• Law Enforcement Specialists and Deportation Officers at the center confirmed 4,035 National Crime Information Center matches during Fiscal Year 2015.
• During Fiscal Year 2015, Law Enforcement Specialists and Deportation Officers at the center responded to over 112,000 calls from law enforcement officers.