Enforcement

Recent Features

FACT SHEET
A Primer on Expedited Removal

Expedited removal is a process by which low-level immigration officers can quickly deport certain noncitizens who are undocumented or have committed fraud or misrepresentation. 

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Detained, Deceived, and Deported: Experiences of Recently Deported Central American Families

First-hand accounts from Central American women and their family members reveal the dangerous and bleak circumstances of life these women and their children faced upon return to their home countries, as well as serious problems in the deportation process. 

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Children in Immigration Court: Over 95 Percent Represented by an Attorney Appear in Court

Many children are placed in deportation proceedings before an immigration judge, where they will carry the legal burden of proving that they should be allowed to remain in the United States. The government does not guarantee them the right to a lawyer. As a result, many children navigate the complicated system without legal representation.

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All Enforcement Content

  • Special Report

Border Insecurity: U.S. Border-Enforcement Policies and National Security

Publication Date: 
April 10, 2006
The U.S. government's efforts to stem undocumented immigration by fortifying the U.S.-Mexico border have increased the profitability of the people-smuggling business and fostered greater...
  • Research and Analysis

Achieving 'Security and Prosperity': Migration and North American Economic Integration

Publication Date: 
February 1, 2006
Most of the border-enforcement and immigration-reform proposals currently being considered in Washington, DC, are not comprehensive or adequate solutions to the issue of undocumented immigration. The...
  • Research and Analysis

Beyond the Border Buildup: Towards a New Approach to Mexico-U.S. Migration

Publication Date: 
September 1, 2005
A proper understanding of the causes of international migration suggests that punitive immigration and border policies tend to backfire, and this is precisely what has happened in the case of the...
  • Research and Analysis

Five Myths About Immigration: Common Misconceptions Underlying U.S. Border-Enforcement Policy

Publication Date: 
August 1, 2005
The current crisis of undocumented immigration to the United States has its roots in fundamental misunderstandings about the causes of immigration and the motivations of immigrants. A growing body of...
  • Research and Analysis

Fencing in Failure: Effective Border Control is Not Achieved by Building More Fences

Publication Date: 
April 1, 2005
New proposals for more fencing and Border Patrol agents along the U.S.-Mexico border may only perpetuate an unsuccessful and counterproductive policy that does not effectively enhance national...
  • Special Report

From Denial to Acceptance: Effectively Regulating Immigration to the United States

Publication Date: 
November 1, 2004
U.S. immigration policy is based on denial. Most lawmakers in the United States have largely embraced the process of economic “globalization,” yet stubbornly refuse to acknowledge that increased...
  • Fact Sheet

Legal Fiction Denies Due Process to Immigrants

Publication Date: 
October 1, 2004
Over a thousand noncitizens face indefinite detention in the United States on the basis of a meaningless legal technicality.
  • Research and Analysis

Targets of Suspicion: The Impact of Post-9/11 Policies on Muslims, Arabs and South Asians in the US

Publication Date: 
May 1, 2004
In response to the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the U.S. government began a campaign of aggressive immigration enforcement targeted at Muslims, Arabs and South Asians. Rather than first...
  • Research and Analysis

The Lessons of 9/11: A Failure of Intelligence, Not Immigration Law

Publication Date: 
December 1, 2003
In the hours following the deadly terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the United States government took the extraordinary step of sealing U.S. borders to traffic and trade by grounding all...
  • Research and Analysis

A Moratorium on Common Sense: Immigration Accord On Hold While Failed Border Enforcement Policies Continue

Publication Date: 
May 1, 2003
After September 11th, efforts to reach an immigration accord with Mexico came to a halt. As a result, the Bush administration continues a poorly conceived border-enforcement strategy from the 1990s...
  • Blog

Biden Reinstates the ‘Remain in Mexico’ Program: What You Need to Know

December 3, 2021

Following months of negotiations with Mexico, the Biden administration announced that it would reinstate the Trump-era Migrant Protection Protocols (informally known as the “Remain in Mexico”...

  • Blog

CBP’s Plan to Expand Data Collection of Individuals Before Arrival at the Border Leaves Questions Unanswered

November 30, 2021

U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) plan to collect information from more individuals before they arrive at the border has raised questions about how the agency will gather and use the...

  • Blog

Apprehensions at the Border Dropped 15% This Fall, Highlighting Mexico’s Role in Stopping Migrants

November 18, 2021

Data released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) shows that the number of individuals apprehended by the Border Patrol at the U.S.-Mexico border fell by 15% from September to October,...

  • Blog

Family Separation Has Caused Life-Long Trauma Years Later

November 16, 2021

Four years ago, immigration lawyers and advocates began to see a disturbing practice emerge: the U.S. government began to forcibly separate children—some very young—from their parents at the...

  • Blog

Groups Call for Transparency Regarding Abuse and Mistreatment of Black Immigrants in Detention

November 10, 2021

By Tsion Gurmu, Legal Manager and Staff Attorney at the Black Alliance for Just Immigration and Emily Creighton, Legal Director of Transparency The public watched in horror this September as U.S....

  • Blog

$1/Day Labor Program for Immigrants in Detention Ruled Unlawful in Washington State

November 3, 2021

In a landmark court decision, Geo Group—one of the largest private prison companies that own and/or manage dozens of immigrant detention centers across the United States—was found to have violated...

  • Blog

ICE Makes It Impossible for Immigrants in Detention to Contact Lawyers

October 29, 2021

By Emma Winger, Staff Attorney, American Immigration Council, and Eunice Cho, Sr. Staff Attorney, ACLU National Prison Project “Ben G.” is a 35-year-old veterinarian from Nicaragua who fled to the...

  • Blog

DHS Issues New Memo Restricting Enforcement Activities in ‘Protected Areas’

October 28, 2021

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued “Guidelines for Enforcement Actions in or Near Protected Areas”—a new memo that provides a framework for when and where DHS law enforcement...

  • Blog

The Border Isn’t Open. Just 1 in 3 People at the Border Last Year Could Access the Asylum Process.

October 26, 2021

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) published new data last week showing that over the past 12 months, the Border Patrol has carried out nearly 1.7 million apprehensions at the southern...

  • Blog

Ninth Circuit Lifts Injunction Protecting People in ICE Detention from COVID-19

October 21, 2021

In a split decision, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on October 20 lifted a lower court’s protections for medically vulnerable people locked up in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE...

  • Press Release

DHS Issues Awaited Guidance on Prioritizing Deportations, Law Enforcement Letter Praises Approach

November 17, 2011

Washington D.C. - Today, Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) Principal Legal Advisor directed all ICE attorneys to begin a systematic review of immigration

  • Press Release

AILA-AIC Survey Reveals ICE Officials' Sporadic Exercise of Prosecutorial Discretion

November 9, 2011

Washington, DC – The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and the American Immigration Council (AIC) released a

  • Press Release

DOJ Responds Forcefully to Civil Rights Disaster in Alabama, What Will DHS Do?

November 4, 2011

Washington D.C. – This week, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that it was filing suit in South Carolina to block Act No.

  • Press Release

Alabama’s Dangerous New Anti-Immigrant Law

September 29, 2011

Washington D.C.

  • Press Release

DHS: Prioritizing Enforcement and Exercising Prosecutorial Discretion

August 22, 2011

Washington D.C. - Today, the American Immigration Council hosted a briefing to discuss the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) announcement last week that it would issue agency

  • Press Release

Prosecutorial Discretion Guidelines May Provide Temporary Relief to Gay and Lesbian Bi-National Couples

August 19, 2011

Washington D.C. –Yesterday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced that they are taking concrete steps to implement existing guidance on prosecutorial

  • Press Release

American Immigration Council Applauds DOJ for Responding to Alabama’s Punitive Anti-Immigrant Law

August 2, 2011

Washington, D.C. – On Monday, the Department of Justice

  • Press Release

The Case for Discretion and Proportionality in Our Immigration System

July 18, 2011

Washington D.C. - It has long been the case that those responsible for carrying out and enforcing our nation's laws do so with a measure of discretion and proporti

  • Press Release

More Fear and Loathing in the House Judiciary Committee

July 13, 2011

Washington, D.C. – Tomorrow, the House Judiciary Committee is scheduled to take up two immigration bills that supposedly address community safety,

  • Press Release

Are States Training Law Enforcement to Implement Restrictive Immigration Laws?

June 24, 2011

Washington, D.C. - While many states legislatures rejected Arizona-style immigration laws this year in anticipation of high costs, legal challenges and charges of racial profiling,

  • Blog

Is Chevron deference on the Supreme Court’s chopping block?

May 24, 2023

The Supreme Court has agreed to decide a case that asks the Court to overturn Chevron v. National Resources Defense Council—an influential decision that requires courts to defer to federal...

  • Blog

Border Patrol Custody Is Already Dangerous and This Florida Lawsuit Is Making It Worse

May 19, 2023

One of the biggest concerns after the end of the Title 42 policy of mass expulsion at the U.S.-Mexico border was that large numbers of people would cross in the hours and days afterward. When the...

  • Blog

How To Seek Asylum (Under Biden’s Asylum Transit Ban), In 15 Not-At-All-Easy Steps

May 11, 2023

Back in February, when the Biden administration proposed a new regulation that would essentially restrict the vast majority of border crossers from qualifying for asylum, we broke it down with a...

  • Blog

Newly Introduced Border Bill Would Create More Chaos at the Border, Not Less

May 9, 2023

With the pandemic-related expulsion policy “Title 42” set to expire May 11, the House GOP introduced its first large-scale border and immigration package on Monday. The bill combines three...

  • Blog

The End of Title 42 Might Be Chaotic, But It Doesn’t Have to Be Confusing. Here’s What You Should Know

May 2, 2023

Title 42 – a policy that has allowed the U.S. government to expel border-crossers without giving them a chance to seek asylum – is expected to officially sunset next week. Federal courts prevented...

  • Blog

ICE Is Shifting Bond Payments to an Electronic System

April 26, 2023

Last week, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced the launch of CeBONDS, a new system people can use to pay bonds and secure the release of individuals in immigration detention....

  • Blog

Texas’ Proposed ‘Border Protection Unit’ Doubles Down on Failed Deterrence Policies

April 21, 2023

With all eyes on the U.S.-Mexico border ahead of the end of Title 42 on May 11, Texas lawmakers are pushing to increase the state’s role in enforcing federal immigration laws—despite Supreme Court...

  • Blog

The Border Patrol’s Inhumanity Has Reached New Heights

April 20, 2023

A family with a baby, waiting outside in the cold overnight. A pregnant woman, enduring the elements for multiple days. An Afghan who worked for the U.S. Army as a translator, hoping for food and...

  • Blog

GOP’s Extreme Border Bill Rejects Solutions and Embraces Ending Asylum

April 19, 2023

On Monday, April 17, the House GOP introduced its first comprehensive border bill of the 118th Congress. The bill comes after months of disagreement within the caucus surrounding legislative...

  • Blog

A Closer Look at Deaths in ICE Detention Facilities

April 13, 2023

On April 6, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced the death of 61 year-old Salvador Vargas at the Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, GA which occurred on April 4. Deaths in ICE...

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