The VOICE (Victims of Immigration Crime Engagement) office is an ICE unit that provides a single point of contact and case-help for people harmed by crimes with an immigration nexus. Services include: explaining immigration enforcement/removal processes to victims; referrals to social-service and local victim resources; help registering for automated custody-status notifications via DHS‑VINE/DHS‑VINE exchange and the ICE Online Detainee Locator; providing releasable criminal/immigration background when allowed; and assistance submitting victim-impact statements. Callers can use a toll‑free hotline (1‑855‑488‑6423).
VOICE was created by DHS/ICE in 2017 (Trump administration) to help victims of crimes involving noncitizens. The office was dismantled/replaced by the Biden administration in June 2021—ICE said it would replace VOICE with a more “comprehensive and inclusive” victims-engagement approach—and DHS/ICE under Secretary Noem announced a formal relaunch of VOICE in April 2025 to restore the dedicated hotline and services.
“Detainable” generally means an offense or circumstance that gives federal immigration authorities legal grounds to arrest and hold (detain) a noncitizen pending immigration proceedings or removal. In practice it also depends on whether local authorities will honor ICE detainer requests: Illinois’ sanctuary-style policies and directives (which limit state/local cooperation with ICE detainers except for certain serious crimes) mean many suspects charged under state law aren’t held for ICE after local processing, so ICE may not be able to take custody until it locates and arrests the person later.
In Illinois law, a Class 4 felony is the least severe felony tier; penalties can include 1–3 years’ imprisonment (up to extended terms in some cases) or probation and fines. The charges listed—abuse of a corpse, concealing a death, and obstructing justice—are Class 4 felonies in Illinois and are treated as serious crimes but are among the lower-level felony classes (Class 1 is more serious). Each carries criminal penalties under Illinois statutes and can lead to felony prosecution, imprisonment, and collateral consequences.
Secretary Kristi Noem is the U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security (appointed by the President) and as head of DHS oversees department policy, components (including ICE) and the creation or relaunch of offices within DHS. The Secretary sets department priorities and can direct agency actions such as reinstating VOICE, but operational authorities (investigations, arrests, prosecutions, removals) remain with respective DHS components (ICE, HSI) and DOJ/US Attorneys for criminal prosecutions.
Criminal prosecution and immigration enforcement are separate tracks: state criminal charges are handled by local/state prosecutors and courts, while ICE enforces federal immigration law. If ICE wants custody after a state court appearance it can seek to take the person into federal custody (e.g., via an ICE arrest or detainer), but whether that happens depends on jurisdictional cooperation, timing, and legal limits. Being arrested/charged in state court does not automatically produce removal; immigration detention, administrative charging (NTA), and removal proceedings follow separate federal procedures.