Immigration detention in the United States
Encyclopedia
Immigration detention in the United States began in 1981, when the administration of President Ronald Reagan
reacted to the mass migration of asylum seekers who arrived in boats from Haiti
by establishing a program to interdict (i.e., stop and search certain vessels suspected of transporting undocumented Haitians). As the number of illegal immigrants who were fleeing economic and political conditions increased, President Bush Sr's
administration attempted to find a regional location to handle the influx of refugees and migrants. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
(UNHCR) arranged for several countries in the region—Belize
, Honduras
, Trinidad
and Tobago
, and Venezuela
—to temporarily provide a safe haven for Haitians however the Coast Guard was becoming increasingly overcrowded from holding hundreds of refugees and by November 18, 1991, the United States forcibly returned 538 Haitians to Haiti. Since the options for safe havens in third countries in the region proved inadequate for the sheer numbers of Haitians fleeing their country, the Coast Guard
took them to the U.S. naval base in Guantanamo
, Cuba
, where they were pre-screened for asylum in the United States.
Mandatory detention was then officially authorized by the federal government in 1996 with the enactment of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) and the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRAIRA). From 1996 to 1998, the number of immigrants in detention increased from 8,500 to 16,000 and by 2008 this number increased to more than 30,000. According to the Global Detention Project, the United States
possesses the largest immigration detention
system in the world. In 2003, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
agency (ICE) was created under the Department of Homeland Security. ICE enforces the United States’ immigration and customs laws, uses investigative techniques to apprehend and detain those suspected of violating them, and then deports many of these individuals. The Office of Detention and Removal Operations (DRO), housed within ICE, oversees the detention and deportation of immigrants taken into custody by ICE. Currently, ICE detains immigrants in fifteen detention centers (including privatized facilities), in state and local jails, in juvenile detention centers, and in shelters.
Several human rights organizations, including Amnesty International
and the American Civil Liberties Union
(ACLU), and a series of reports made by the New York Times have cited concerns with ICE’s management of these detention centers. Reports refer to instances of human rights abuse and inadequate or unprofessional medical care in these detention facilities. Such reports have also publicized the death of several immigrants in detention and have accused ICE of covering up this information. ICE, in response, has released a list of all the individuals who died in its detention facilities and has publicly stated that the agency provides “state-of-the-art medical care” and “do[es] everything possible to maintain the best quality of life for the detainees in…custody." In May 2008 the Detainee Basic Medical Care Act of 2008 (H.R. 5950) was introduced to the United States Congress
by Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), though no further steps have been taken to enact the bill.
, Batavia, New York, El Centro, California
, El Paso, Texas
, Florence, Arizona
, Miami, Florida
, Los Fresnos, Texas
, and San Pedro, California. ICE also has contracts with seven private companies that run facilities in Aurora, Colorado
, Houston, Texas
, Laredo, Texas
, Seattle, Washington
, Elizabeth, New Jersey
, Queens, New York, and San Diego, California
. Other facilities that house immigrant detainees include juvenile detention centers and shelters. However, the majority of immigrants are detained in state and local jails, which have contracts with ICE. At the end of the 2007 fiscal year the United States’ immigration detention system comprised 961 sites.
in 2008. As of April 2011, the Secure Communities' biometric sharing capability is being used in 1,210 of 3,181 jurisdictions (state, county, and local jails and prisons) in the USA. Since the program was started in 2008 through March 2011, 140,396 convicted criminal aliens have been booked into ICE custody resulting in 72,445 deportations. Under the Secure Communities program, the fingerprints of everyone arrested and booked are not only checked against FBI criminal history records, but they are also checked against DHS immigration records. If fingerprints match DHS records, ICE determines if immigration enforcement action is required, considering the immigration status of the alien, the severity of the crime and the alien's criminal history. ICE then places a detainer
on the individual, which is a request that the jail hold that person for up to 48 hours beyond their scheduled release, so that ICE can come to interview or possibly take custody of them.
The Obama administration has been a big proponent of the program expanding it from 14 jurisdictions under President George Bush to over 1,210 jurisdictions as of March 2011. ICE plans to expand the program nationwide by 2013.
. Under Section 235(b)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, if an individual stopped at the border is believed to be an illegal immigrant or a threat to national security, they are considered “inadmissible” and classified as an “arriving alien.” Individuals detained at the border are only released on a case-to-case basis by the authority of ICE officials.
,” an “aggravated felony,” a firearms offense, or a controlled substance violation. Thus, crimes that did not assign jail time to the individual may subject them to mandatory detention. The ACLU has condemned this practice, saying that it violates due process
and is inefficient and costly, since individuals who do not pose a threat to national security but have a criminal record are often the ones subjected to mandatory detention.
Indefinite detention
occurs when immigrants awaiting deportation are detained indefinitely because they are refused repatriation
by their home countries or by the United States
in the event that it does not have diplomatic relations with their home country. While the Immigration and Nationality Act mandates ICE to carry out a custody review if an individual slated for deportation is held in detention for more than ninety days to reassess whether or not the individual is a threat to national security or can be released, these reviews often do not take place. Thus, such individuals are frequently left in detention for long periods of time without being given notice of release or deportation.
.
’ prison system, has raised several concerns. Without the government being directly involved, human rights abuses can go unmonitored and be difficult to uncover. The privatization model is based on profit maximization, meaning that more detainees result in more money for the private companies contracted to operate these facilities. While a cost-benefit argument is used to vouch for privatization, an attorney from the ACLU has stated, “It's much more expensive to detain people rather than supervise them to ensure that they appear for their removal proceedings and for deportation if necessary.” In 2009, ICE proposed the construction of an immigration detention center outside of Los Angeles
, which would be operated by a private corporation.
These governmental contracts with detention facilities have not only gained profit for private companies, but also for the cities and counties that house immigrants in their detention centers. In 2008, ICE spent $55.2 million on detaining immigrants at thirteen jails in California
and roughly $57 million in 2009. For many cities and counties across the country, immigration detention has been a lucrative business that provides much needed revenue. Santa Ana
’s Police Chief, Paul Walters, stated, "We treat [the jail] as a business," in reference to a proposed plan to convert rooms at the local jail into a site for detained immigrants.
provides convicted individuals with legal advice, free of charge if they cannot afford an attorney, immigrants are not guaranteed this right. Instead, they must pay for a lawyer, an option most detained immigrants cannot afford. While immigration courts are required to supply detainees with a list of pro-bono lawyers and agencies that provide legal advice, many of those on the list only represent specific types of immigrants, i.e., asylum seekers or individuals who are not detained. While ICE detention standards state that detainees are provided with access to law libraries, allotted a handbook discussing immigration detention, and given a presentation on their legal rights, these actions are often not carried out in practice.
Several cases of abuse in immigration detention centers have been cited by sources including Amnesty International
, the ACLU, the Los Angeles Times
and the New York Times. The Los Angeles Times
reported on one such instance of abuse, endured by a detainee named Luiz Enrique Guzman, who stated, “the conditions [were] "terrible"…the center staff frequently violated his civil rights” and that “he was beaten while in detention and placed in segregation because he worked to organize detainees.” The New York Times reported “recurrent complaints include[ing] frigid temperatures, mildew and meals that leave detainees hungry and willing to clean for $1 a day to pay for commissary food” at the Varick Federal Detention Facility in Manhattan. In addition, individuals in immigration detention centers are often placed in custody with violent offenders, even though illegal immigration is a civil, not criminal, matter.
Immigrants placed in detention centers often go without thorough medical care and many with illnesses or medical conditions aren’t properly monitored by doctors. Mentally disabled detainees are especially vulnerable. If they are transferred, they are leave family and doctors with knowledge of their case and are unable to vouch for themselves. According to the New York Times, “their mental incompetence is routinely ignored by immigration judges and deportation officers, who are under pressure to handle rising caseloads and meet government quotas.” As of January, 10, 2010 there have been 107 deaths of immigrants in detention since 2003, when ICE was created. ICE has been accused of covering up many of these deaths, like that of Boubacar Bah, an immigrant from Guinea who was placed in isolation for thirteen hours after suffering from a skull fracture and eventually died in custody. Another immigrant who died in ICE detention was Hiu Lui Ng, who’s fractured spine and cancer
had gone undiagnosed. In fact, officials at the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in Rhode Island
accused him of lying about his situation and denied him medical care. Francisco Castaneda was an immigrant detained at a facility in California who was similarly denied care – a biopsy for a penile lesion – and ended up dying from cancer
. ICE has responded by publicizing the list of deaths that have occurred in its detention centers, performing a review of its facilities, and issuing a renewed set of standards to be followed in detention.
.” Protests by detained immigrants have taken place at several facilities, including the Varick Federal Detention Facility in Manhattan. One hundred detainees at the Varick site, all of whom had no criminal charges, sent a petition in November, 2009 to the New York City Bar Association detailing human rights abuses and substandard conditions and asking for legal help. On January 19, 2010, detainees at the same site initiated a hunger strike against the conditions of detention. The strike was broken up by a SWAT
team that allegedly “used pepper spray and “beat up” some detainees, took many to segregation cells as punishment and transferred about 17 to immigration jails in other states.”
Janet Napolitano
has stated that alternatives to detention will be provided for immigrants who have no criminal convictions as a part of a series of new reforms planned for the country’s immigration detention system. These alternatives include housing immigrants at “converted hotels, residential facilities or place[ing them] on electronic ankle bracelets for monitoring.”
(FAIR) has stated, "the criminal alien program is growing," "continued illegal immigration aggravates the problem" of the United States’ detention system, and has called for "greater INS
and local government cooperation to identify criminal aliens, additional detention facilities for those in deportation proceedings." On April 26, 2010 the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office
joined 23 other counties in Florida, in addition to several across the country, in becoming a member of the Secure Communities program and using biometric techniques to "enhance identification and removal of criminal aliens." Thus, many organizations and regions across the country believe that there is a need for such technologies to track down illegal immigrants who might have committed crimes, detain them, and deport them. Such organizations and law enforcement officials view these immigrants as a threat to national security. In addition, many cities and counties have benefited financially from housing immigration detention centers in their vicinity.
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
reacted to the mass migration of asylum seekers who arrived in boats from Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
by establishing a program to interdict (i.e., stop and search certain vessels suspected of transporting undocumented Haitians). As the number of illegal immigrants who were fleeing economic and political conditions increased, President Bush Sr's
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
administration attempted to find a regional location to handle the influx of refugees and migrants. The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees , also known as The UN Refugee Agency is a United Nations agency mandated to protect and support refugees at the request of a government or the UN itself and assists in their voluntary repatriation, local integration or resettlement to...
(UNHCR) arranged for several countries in the region—Belize
Belize
Belize is a constitutional monarchy and the northernmost country in Central America. Belize has a diverse society, comprising many cultures and languages. Even though Kriol and Spanish are spoken among the population, Belize is the only country in Central America where English is the official...
, Honduras
Honduras
Honduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
, Trinidad
Trinidad
Trinidad is the larger and more populous of the two major islands and numerous landforms which make up the island nation of Trinidad and Tobago. It is the southernmost island in the Caribbean and lies just off the northeastern coast of Venezuela. With an area of it is also the fifth largest in...
and Tobago
Tobago
Tobago is the smaller of the two main islands that make up the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. It is located in the southern Caribbean, northeast of the island of Trinidad and southeast of Grenada. The island lies outside the hurricane belt...
, and Venezuela
Venezuela
Venezuela , officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela , is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It borders Colombia to the west, Guyana to the east, and Brazil to the south...
—to temporarily provide a safe haven for Haitians however the Coast Guard was becoming increasingly overcrowded from holding hundreds of refugees and by November 18, 1991, the United States forcibly returned 538 Haitians to Haiti. Since the options for safe havens in third countries in the region proved inadequate for the sheer numbers of Haitians fleeing their country, the Coast Guard
Coast guard
A coast guard or coastguard is a national organization responsible for various services at sea. However the term implies widely different responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with customs and security duties to being a volunteer organization tasked with...
took them to the U.S. naval base in Guantanamo
Guantánamo
Guantánamo is a municipality and city in southeast Cuba and capital of Guantánamo Province.Guantánamo is served by the Caimanera port and the site of a famous U.S. Naval base. The area produces sugarcane and cotton wool...
, Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
, where they were pre-screened for asylum in the United States.
Mandatory detention was then officially authorized by the federal government in 1996 with the enactment of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA) and the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRAIRA). From 1996 to 1998, the number of immigrants in detention increased from 8,500 to 16,000 and by 2008 this number increased to more than 30,000. According to the Global Detention Project, the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
possesses the largest immigration detention
Immigration detention
Immigration detention is the policy of holding individuals suspected of visa violations, illegal entry or unauthorised arrival, and those subject to deportation and removal in detention until a decision is made by immigration authorities to grant a visa and release them into the community, or to...
system in the world. In 2003, the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is a federal law enforcement agency under the United States Department of Homeland Security , responsible for identifying, investigating, and dismantling vulnerabilities regarding the nation's border, economic, transportation, and infrastructure security...
agency (ICE) was created under the Department of Homeland Security. ICE enforces the United States’ immigration and customs laws, uses investigative techniques to apprehend and detain those suspected of violating them, and then deports many of these individuals. The Office of Detention and Removal Operations (DRO), housed within ICE, oversees the detention and deportation of immigrants taken into custody by ICE. Currently, ICE detains immigrants in fifteen detention centers (including privatized facilities), in state and local jails, in juvenile detention centers, and in shelters.
Several human rights organizations, including Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
and the American Civil Liberties Union
American Civil Liberties Union
The American Civil Liberties Union is a U.S. non-profit organization whose stated mission is "to defend and preserve the individual rights and liberties guaranteed to every person in this country by the Constitution and laws of the United States." It works through litigation, legislation, and...
(ACLU), and a series of reports made by the New York Times have cited concerns with ICE’s management of these detention centers. Reports refer to instances of human rights abuse and inadequate or unprofessional medical care in these detention facilities. Such reports have also publicized the death of several immigrants in detention and have accused ICE of covering up this information. ICE, in response, has released a list of all the individuals who died in its detention facilities and has publicly stated that the agency provides “state-of-the-art medical care” and “do[es] everything possible to maintain the best quality of life for the detainees in…custody." In May 2008 the Detainee Basic Medical Care Act of 2008 (H.R. 5950) was introduced to the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
by Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), though no further steps have been taken to enact the bill.
Office of Detention and Removal Operations
There are four divisions within ICE: DRO, the Office of Investigations (OI), the Office of Intelligence (Intel), and the Office of International Affairs (OIA), which all work to investigate illegal immigration, enforce immigration laws, and detain and deport offenders of these laws. DRO is the division that deals directly with the detention of immigrants. DRO, under ICE, operates eight detention centers, termed “Service Processing Centers,” in Aguadilla, Puerto RicoAguadilla, Puerto Rico
Aguadilla , founded in 1775 by Luis de Córdova, is a city located in the northwestern tip of Puerto Rico bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, north of Aguada, and Moca and west of Isabela. Aguadilla is spread over 15 wards and Aguadilla Pueblo...
, Batavia, New York, El Centro, California
El Centro, California
El Centro is a city in and county seat of Imperial County, the largest city in the Imperial Valley and the east anchor of the Southern California Border Region, and the core urban area and principal city of the El Centro metropolitan area which encompasses all of Imperial County. El Centro is also...
, El Paso, Texas
El Paso, Texas
El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States...
, Florence, Arizona
Florence, Arizona
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 17,054 people, 2,226 households, and 1,540 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,056.2 people per square mile . There were 3,216 housing units at an average density of 387.7 per square mile...
, Miami, Florida
Miami, Florida
Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...
, Los Fresnos, Texas
Los Fresnos, Texas
Los Fresnos is a city in Cameron County, Texas, United States. The population was 4,512 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Brownsville–Harlingen–Raymondville and the Matamoros–Brownsville metropolitan areas....
, and San Pedro, California. ICE also has contracts with seven private companies that run facilities in Aurora, Colorado
Aurora, Colorado
City of Aurora is a Home Rule Municipality spanning Arapahoe, Adams, and Douglas counties in Colorado. Aurora is an eastern suburb of the Denver-Aurora-Broomfield, CO Metropolitan Statistical Area . The city is the third most populous city in the Colorado and the 56th most populous city in the...
, Houston, Texas
Houston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
, Laredo, Texas
Laredo, Texas
Laredo is the county seat of Webb County, Texas, United States, located on the north bank of the Rio Grande in South Texas, across from Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, Mexico. According to the 2010 census, the city population was 236,091 making it the 3rd largest on the United States-Mexican border,...
, Seattle, Washington
Seattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
, Elizabeth, New Jersey
Elizabeth, New Jersey
Elizabeth is a city in Union County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city had a total population of 124,969, retaining its ranking as New Jersey's fourth largest city with an increase of 4,401 residents from its 2000 Census population of 120,568...
, Queens, New York, and San Diego, California
San Diego, California
San Diego is the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round...
. Other facilities that house immigrant detainees include juvenile detention centers and shelters. However, the majority of immigrants are detained in state and local jails, which have contracts with ICE. At the end of the 2007 fiscal year the United States’ immigration detention system comprised 961 sites.
Secure Communities
In 2007, the program Secure Communities was created within ICE to “identify” criminal aliens, “prioritize” them based on the severity of the crime they committed, and “transform” the processes necessary to remove them by increasing efficiency. Secure Communities identifies illegal immigrants with the use of modern technology, notably biometric identification techniques. These were first employed in Houston, TexasHouston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
in 2008. As of April 2011, the Secure Communities' biometric sharing capability is being used in 1,210 of 3,181 jurisdictions (state, county, and local jails and prisons) in the USA. Since the program was started in 2008 through March 2011, 140,396 convicted criminal aliens have been booked into ICE custody resulting in 72,445 deportations. Under the Secure Communities program, the fingerprints of everyone arrested and booked are not only checked against FBI criminal history records, but they are also checked against DHS immigration records. If fingerprints match DHS records, ICE determines if immigration enforcement action is required, considering the immigration status of the alien, the severity of the crime and the alien's criminal history. ICE then places a detainer
Detainer
Detainer ; in law, the act of keeping a person against his will, or the wrongful keeping of a person's goods, or other real or personal property...
on the individual, which is a request that the jail hold that person for up to 48 hours beyond their scheduled release, so that ICE can come to interview or possibly take custody of them.
The Obama administration has been a big proponent of the program expanding it from 14 jurisdictions under President George Bush to over 1,210 jurisdictions as of March 2011. ICE plans to expand the program nationwide by 2013.
Section 287(g)
The enactment of IIRAIRA in 1996 added onto the Immigration and Nationality Act a clause, titled Section 287(g), which allows state and local law enforcement officials to enforce federal immigration law on the condition that they are trained and monitored by ICE. This agreement in practice permits local and state enforcement officials to arrest and even detain individuals they encounter during their day-to-day duties if they suspect them to be or “identify” them as illegal immigrants. However, many of the individuals picked up by local law enforcement have committed minor offenses, such as driving infractions, and lacked proper identification when stopped. Many civil rights groups have accused Section 287(g) of permitting or causing racial profiling.Detention at the border
Often, immigrants or individuals lacking documentation arriving at the United States border are detained for extended periods of time while ICE decides if they are “admissible” or should be deported. These individuals may include refugees seeking asylumRight of asylum
Right of asylum is an ancient juridical notion, under which a person persecuted for political opinions or religious beliefs in his or her own country may be protected by another sovereign authority, a foreign country, or church sanctuaries...
. Under Section 235(b)(2) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, if an individual stopped at the border is believed to be an illegal immigrant or a threat to national security, they are considered “inadmissible” and classified as an “arriving alien.” Individuals detained at the border are only released on a case-to-case basis by the authority of ICE officials.
Mandatory and Indefinite Detention
After being picked by ICE officials, either at the Border, through Secure Communities, or by local officials by way of Section 287(g), an individual can be released on bond if they are not deemed a “threat” to national security. However, many are put in mandatory detention and are disallowed any custody review of their eventual deportation hearings. The enactment of AEDPA and IIRAIRA subjected a wider range of individuals to mandatory detention, including, “non-violent misdemeanor convictions without any jail sentence, and anyone considered a national security or terrorist risk.” In addition, if an individual is already in the U.S., they will be put in mandatory detention if suspected of being a threat to national security or charged with two crimes of “moral turpitudeMoral turpitude
Moral turpitude is a legal concept in the United States that refers to "conduct that is considered contrary to community standards of justice, honesty or good morals." It appears in U.S. immigration law from the nineteenth century...
,” an “aggravated felony,” a firearms offense, or a controlled substance violation. Thus, crimes that did not assign jail time to the individual may subject them to mandatory detention. The ACLU has condemned this practice, saying that it violates due process
Due process
Due process is the legal code that the state must venerate all of the legal rights that are owed to a person under the principle. Due process balances the power of the state law of the land and thus protects individual persons from it...
and is inefficient and costly, since individuals who do not pose a threat to national security but have a criminal record are often the ones subjected to mandatory detention.
Indefinite detention
Indefinite detention
Indefinite detention is the incarceration of an arrested person by a national government or law enforcement agency without a trial. It is a controversial practice on the part of any government or agency that is in violation of many national and international laws, including human rights laws...
occurs when immigrants awaiting deportation are detained indefinitely because they are refused repatriation
Repatriation
Repatriation is the process of returning a person back to one's place of origin or citizenship. This includes the process of returning refugees or soldiers to their place of origin following a war...
by their home countries or by the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
in the event that it does not have diplomatic relations with their home country. While the Immigration and Nationality Act mandates ICE to carry out a custody review if an individual slated for deportation is held in detention for more than ninety days to reassess whether or not the individual is a threat to national security or can be released, these reviews often do not take place. Thus, such individuals are frequently left in detention for long periods of time without being given notice of release or deportation.
Deportation
Deportation occurs after immigrants, who have been detained for a period of time, are brought before an immigration judge in removal proceedings. These are conducted by the Executive Office for Immigration ReviewExecutive Office for Immigration Review
The Executive Office for Immigration Review is an office of the United States Department of Justice and is responsible for adjudicating immigration cases in the United States. The EOIR oversees immigration courts in the United States through the Office of the Chief Immigration Judge...
.
Privatization
Several of the detention centers housing immigrants are operated by private corporations who have contracts with ICE. The Varick Federal Detention Facility in Manhattan is one of these privatized detention centers. The Varick facility is managed by Ahtna Technical Services, Inc., an Alaskan corporation that hires a subcontractor to provide guards, transportation, and equipment used at the center. The privatized model of detention, which is common within the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
’ prison system, has raised several concerns. Without the government being directly involved, human rights abuses can go unmonitored and be difficult to uncover. The privatization model is based on profit maximization, meaning that more detainees result in more money for the private companies contracted to operate these facilities. While a cost-benefit argument is used to vouch for privatization, an attorney from the ACLU has stated, “It's much more expensive to detain people rather than supervise them to ensure that they appear for their removal proceedings and for deportation if necessary.” In 2009, ICE proposed the construction of an immigration detention center outside of Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, which would be operated by a private corporation.
These governmental contracts with detention facilities have not only gained profit for private companies, but also for the cities and counties that house immigrants in their detention centers. In 2008, ICE spent $55.2 million on detaining immigrants at thirteen jails in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
and roughly $57 million in 2009. For many cities and counties across the country, immigration detention has been a lucrative business that provides much needed revenue. Santa Ana
Santa Ana, California
Santa Ana is the county seat and second most populous city in Orange County, California, and with a population of 324,528 at the 2010 census, Santa Ana is the 57th-most populous city in the United States....
’s Police Chief, Paul Walters, stated, "We treat [the jail] as a business," in reference to a proposed plan to convert rooms at the local jail into a site for detained immigrants.
Conditions
Several reports have been made citing instances of basic human rights standards being violated in immigration detention centers across the country. Reports have referred to allegations of abuse and a lack of legal counsel and proper medical care provided to detainees. In addition, immigrant detainees, unlike citizen prisoners, can be transferred between detention facilities without notice. While the United States ConstitutionUnited States Constitution
The Constitution of the United States is the supreme law of the United States of America. It is the framework for the organization of the United States government and for the relationship of the federal government with the states, citizens, and all people within the United States.The first three...
provides convicted individuals with legal advice, free of charge if they cannot afford an attorney, immigrants are not guaranteed this right. Instead, they must pay for a lawyer, an option most detained immigrants cannot afford. While immigration courts are required to supply detainees with a list of pro-bono lawyers and agencies that provide legal advice, many of those on the list only represent specific types of immigrants, i.e., asylum seekers or individuals who are not detained. While ICE detention standards state that detainees are provided with access to law libraries, allotted a handbook discussing immigration detention, and given a presentation on their legal rights, these actions are often not carried out in practice.
Several cases of abuse in immigration detention centers have been cited by sources including Amnesty International
Amnesty International
Amnesty International is an international non-governmental organisation whose stated mission is "to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights, and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated."Following a publication of Peter Benenson's...
, the ACLU, the Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
and the New York Times. The Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
reported on one such instance of abuse, endured by a detainee named Luiz Enrique Guzman, who stated, “the conditions [were] "terrible"…the center staff frequently violated his civil rights” and that “he was beaten while in detention and placed in segregation because he worked to organize detainees.” The New York Times reported “recurrent complaints include[ing] frigid temperatures, mildew and meals that leave detainees hungry and willing to clean for $1 a day to pay for commissary food” at the Varick Federal Detention Facility in Manhattan. In addition, individuals in immigration detention centers are often placed in custody with violent offenders, even though illegal immigration is a civil, not criminal, matter.
Immigrants placed in detention centers often go without thorough medical care and many with illnesses or medical conditions aren’t properly monitored by doctors. Mentally disabled detainees are especially vulnerable. If they are transferred, they are leave family and doctors with knowledge of their case and are unable to vouch for themselves. According to the New York Times, “their mental incompetence is routinely ignored by immigration judges and deportation officers, who are under pressure to handle rising caseloads and meet government quotas.” As of January, 10, 2010 there have been 107 deaths of immigrants in detention since 2003, when ICE was created. ICE has been accused of covering up many of these deaths, like that of Boubacar Bah, an immigrant from Guinea who was placed in isolation for thirteen hours after suffering from a skull fracture and eventually died in custody. Another immigrant who died in ICE detention was Hiu Lui Ng, who’s fractured spine and cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
had gone undiagnosed. In fact, officials at the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
accused him of lying about his situation and denied him medical care. Francisco Castaneda was an immigrant detained at a facility in California who was similarly denied care – a biopsy for a penile lesion – and ended up dying from cancer
Cancer
Cancer , known medically as a malignant neoplasm, is a large group of different diseases, all involving unregulated cell growth. In cancer, cells divide and grow uncontrollably, forming malignant tumors, and invade nearby parts of the body. The cancer may also spread to more distant parts of the...
. ICE has responded by publicizing the list of deaths that have occurred in its detention centers, performing a review of its facilities, and issuing a renewed set of standards to be followed in detention.
Criticisms
In addition to their condemnation of the conditions at immigration detention centers, various human rights groups and news sources have also criticized the high costs necessary to sustain ICE’s detention infrastructure. ICE’s annual budget is roughly 2.5 billion for its detention and deportation duties. The daily cost for holding an individual at an immigration detention facility is roughly $100 per person. Furthermore, it has been reported that only a small percentage of the population of detained immigrants have committed crimes. Of the 32,000 immigrants in ICE detention on January 25, 2009, 18,690 had no criminal convictions, “not even for illegal entryIllegal entry
Illegal entry is the act of foreign nationals arriving in or crossing the borders into a country in violation of its immigration law.Migrants from nations that do not have automatic visa agreements, or who would not otherwise qualify for a visa, often cross the borders illegally in some areas like...
.” Protests by detained immigrants have taken place at several facilities, including the Varick Federal Detention Facility in Manhattan. One hundred detainees at the Varick site, all of whom had no criminal charges, sent a petition in November, 2009 to the New York City Bar Association detailing human rights abuses and substandard conditions and asking for legal help. On January 19, 2010, detainees at the same site initiated a hunger strike against the conditions of detention. The strike was broken up by a SWAT
SWAT
A SWAT team is an elite tactical unit in various national law enforcement departments. They are trained to perform high-risk operations that fall outside of the abilities of regular officers...
team that allegedly “used pepper spray and “beat up” some detainees, took many to segregation cells as punishment and transferred about 17 to immigration jails in other states.”
Alternatives
ICE has acknowledged that its system of immigration detention needs an “overhaul.” It has issued a report citing steps it plans to take “immediately,” including hiring a medical professional to review medial complaints and establishing an Office of Detention Oversight (ODO), which will be independent from DRO and will report detainees grievances. Secretary of Homeland SecurityHomeland security
Homeland security is an umbrella term for security efforts to protect states against terrorist activity. Specifically, is a concerted national effort to prevent terrorist attacks within the U.S., reduce America’s vulnerability to terrorism, and minimize the damage and recover from attacks that do...
Janet Napolitano
Janet Napolitano
Janet Napolitano is the third and current United States Secretary of Homeland Security, serving in the administration of President Barack Obama. She is the fourth person to hold the position, which was created after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. A member of the Democratic Party, she was the 21st...
has stated that alternatives to detention will be provided for immigrants who have no criminal convictions as a part of a series of new reforms planned for the country’s immigration detention system. These alternatives include housing immigrants at “converted hotels, residential facilities or place[ing them] on electronic ankle bracelets for monitoring.”
Pro-detention argument
The Federation for American Immigration ReformFederation for American Immigration Reform
The Federation for American Immigration Reform is a non-profit tax exempt educational organization in the United States that advocates changes in U.S. immigration policy that would result in significant reductions in immigration, both legal and illegal...
(FAIR) has stated, "the criminal alien program is growing," "continued illegal immigration aggravates the problem" of the United States’ detention system, and has called for "greater INS
Immigration and Naturalization Service
The United States Immigration and Naturalization Service , now referred to as Legacy INS, ceased to exist under that name on March 1, 2003, when most of its functions were transferred from the Department of Justice to three new components within the newly created Department of Homeland Security, as...
and local government cooperation to identify criminal aliens, additional detention facilities for those in deportation proceedings." On April 26, 2010 the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office
Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office
The Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office is the largest law enforcement agency in Palm Beach County, Florida. With more than 4,000 employees and 4,300 volunteers, the department provides police services for more than 680,000 residents in the county's unincorporated areas as well as more than 120,000...
joined 23 other counties in Florida, in addition to several across the country, in becoming a member of the Secure Communities program and using biometric techniques to "enhance identification and removal of criminal aliens." Thus, many organizations and regions across the country believe that there is a need for such technologies to track down illegal immigrants who might have committed crimes, detain them, and deport them. Such organizations and law enforcement officials view these immigrants as a threat to national security. In addition, many cities and counties have benefited financially from housing immigration detention centers in their vicinity.
Immigration detention under Obama
The Obama Administration has promised to overhaul the current immigration detention system and transform it into one that is more centralized and provides better transparency. While reforms have been promised, immigrant rights groups have raised concerns that detention centers will not be reprimanded if abuses against detainees are committed. In addition, reports have shown that ICE officials are under pressure to increase detention and deportation quotas to fulfill the agency’s annual goal. A 2010 memo issued by James M. Chaparro, the chief of DRO “congratulated agents for reaching the agency’s goal of “150,000 criminal alien removals” for the year ending Sept. 30” but “instructed agents to pick up the pace of deportations by detaining more noncitizens suspected only of unauthorized residence.” Janet Napolitano has also publicly endorsed the Secure Communities initiative, which has “rapidly expanded” under the Obama Administration, saying that “she hope[s] the program would expand to the whole country by 2013.”See also
- Illegal immigration to the United StatesIllegal immigration to the United StatesAn illegal immigrant in the United States is an alien who has entered the United States without government permission or stayed beyond the termination date of a visa....
- History of US immigration lawsHistory of laws concerning immigration and naturalization in the United StatesThis is a history of laws concerning immigration and naturalization in the United States.-18th century:The first naturalization law in the United States was the Naturalization Act of 1790, which restricted naturalization to "free white persons" of "good moral character" who had resided in the...