"I've seen illegals who have been deported seven or eight times," he said. "The reason they keep coming back is they know there are no consequences."

One way to get a glimpse into the types of crimes immigrants have been convicted of is to look at so-called detainers. Detainers are requests by ICE to local, state and federal law enforcement to hold noncitizens for possible deportation.

Half of the 95,085 immigrants targeted by ICE for possible criminal deportation in fiscal 2015 did not have criminal convictions at all, according to an analysis of ICE data by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University. (TRAC has examined detainer requests issued between 2003 and 2015, which it obtained through the Freedom of Information Act.)

The rest had convictions for drunken driving (6.7 percent), assault (4 percent), drug trafficking (2.1 percent), burglary (1.8 percent), sale of marijuana (1.7 percent) and traffic offense (1.6 percent). Fewer still had convictions for illegal entry, larceny, sale of cocaine and domestic violence.

All the evidence shows that serious crimes committed by noncitizens are "extremely rare," said TRAC Director Susan Long. "The issue is, what do you do when you can’t find that many serious criminals?" she said. "We don't want murderers and rapists in our midst regardless of their citizenship, but you have to find them."

A detainer is the first step in a long process and does not always include complete details of a detainee’s criminal history, according to ICE officials.

Black immigrants are particularly susceptible to getting caught in the prison-deportation pipeline, said Wellek of the Immigrant Defense Project.

According a 2016 report by the Black Alliance for Just Immigration, a research and advocacy group, more than one in five noncitizens facing deportation for criminal offenses is black. Black immigrants also are more likely than other immigrants to be deported because of a conviction.

Back home in Kenya, Owino was a track star, representing his country in international competitions. He was well-known — and he was outspoken about police corruption and human rights violations, he said, and that made him a target of police. After he was arrested and tortured twice, Owino said, he applied for a student visa and started attending college in San Diego in 1998.

But 18 months shy of graduation, he said, the combination of alcohol and gambling, plus the breakup of his marriage and "bad memories" from his life in Kenya sent him into a downward spiral. Owino dropped out of school and ended up living in the streets — and overstaying his visa. He said he was hungry and desperate when he decided to rob a beauty salon. "I forced myself and demanded money," Owino said. "I was super drunk. Police caught me two blocks away."

No one was hurt, but because Owino brandished a penknife during the course of the robbery, he was sentenced to three years in state prison. After serving most of his term, Owino was transferred to a detention facility, where he waited for nine years to be adjudicated for deportation.

Last year, an immigration judge released him on $1,500 bond. His case, along with that of other immigrants who've been held in detention for long periods, is before the US Supreme Court. Oral arguments were heard Nov. 30. At issue is whether it violates the Constitution to subject immigrants facing criminal deportation to long-term detention without bond hearings.

For now, Owino works at a farmers market in San Diego, selling Kenyan food as he waits to hear his fate. He is worried about what will happen to him if he’s deported to Kenya. The police there, he said, have long memories. "They will kill me for sure." 

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