Homegrown: U.S. federal cases against ISIS

Seamus Hughes , Callie Vitro , Camden Carmichael , Mackenzie Harms , Austin Doctor

Isis , Courts , Hgve
September 2025

Table of Contents

The current state of U.S. federal cases against ISIS

Project Overview

The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is a transnational Salafi-jihadist terrorist group, designated as a foreign terrorist organization (FTO) by the U.S. Department of State. Since 2014 when the leader of ISIS declared the global caliphate, 263 individuals have been federally charged with ISIS-related crimes in U.S. courts. Since ISIS is a designated FTO, most cases (72.6%) involving ISIS-related activity are resolved using the material support to terrorism statute. This brief summarizes the scope of federal court cases related to ISIS in the U.S. since 2014.

Since 2014 when the leader of ISIS declared the global caliphate, 263 individuals have been federally charged with ISIS-related crimes in U.S. courts.