Detention

The enforcement of immigration laws is a complex and hotly-debated topic. Learn more about the costs of immigration enforcement and the ways in which the U.S. can enforce our immigration laws humanely and in a manner that ensures due process.

Recent Features

  • Litigation

Stopping Policies Endangering Immigration Attorneys, Clients, and the Public During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The Council filed a lawsuit to close the immigration courts and ensure due process.

All Detention Content

  • Special Report

Tracking the Biden Agenda on Immigration Enforcement

May 20, 2021
This report analyzes the Biden administration's 100 days progress in reforming immigration enforcement and recommendations for how to best move forward.
  • Fact Sheet

Community Support for Migrants Navigating the U.S. Immigration System

February 26, 2021
This fact sheet draws from original data gathered from hundreds of community-organizations around the country and provides a snapshot of the extent of available services that help migrants navigate...
  • Fact Sheet

Prosecuting People for Coming to the United States

January 10, 2020
Over the last two decades, the federal government increasingly has utilized the criminal courts to punish people for immigration violations. This overview provides basic information about entry-...
  • Fact Sheet

The Institutional Hearing Program: An Overview

July 17, 2019
The Institutional Hearing Program permits immigration judges to conduct removal proceedings for noncitizens serving criminal sentences in certain correctional facilities.
  • Special Report

Detaining Families

August 16, 2018
This report presents findings from the first empirical analysis of asylum adjudication in family detention. Drawing on government data from over 18,000 immigration court proceedings initiated between...
  • Special Report

Divided by Detention: Asylum-Seeking Families’ Experiences of Separation

August 31, 2016
This report examines what happens when “family detention” does not actually keep loved ones together and profiles the experiences of five asylum-seeking families who are divided by detention.
  • Special Report

Detained Beyond the Limit

August 18, 2016
This report reveals that individuals are frequently held for days and sometimes even months in holding cells in Border Patrol sectors along the U.S.’ southwest border.
  • Special Report

Hieleras (Iceboxes) in the Rio Grande Valley Sector

December 17, 2015
These accounts reveal the dehumanizing conditions to which these women were subjected while in Border Patrol custody.
  • Special Report

A Humane Approach Can Work: The Effectiveness of Alternatives to Detention for Asylum Seekers

July 22, 2015

For decades, the U.S. refugee protection system has been a symbol of the nation’s generosity and openness to the world’s persecuted. Yet since Congress’ enactment of the Illegal Immigration Reform...

  • Fact Sheet

Way Too Long: Prolonged Detention in Border Patrol Holding Cells, Government Records Show

June 10, 2015

Each year, the Border Patrol, a division of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), holds hundreds of thousands of people in detention facilities near the southern border that are...

  • Litigation

Council Sues Immigration Agencies for Records of Enforcement Databases

This Freedom of Information Act lawsuit seeks to uncover information about the databases and systems that Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agencies use in immigration enforcement.
  • Amicus Briefs

Council Files Amicus Brief on the Legality of Prolonged Mandatory Detention

May 27, 2021
The amicus brief in Ayom v. Garland urges the eighth circuit to affirm that mandatory detention has constitutional limits, and reject the endorsement of prolonged mandatory detention for people in removal proceedings.
  • FOIA

Scrutinizing the Treatment and Conditions Black Immigrants Face in Detention

The Council and Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI) are investigating the abuse and mistreatment of Black immigrants in ICE detention facilities located in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.
  • FOIA

Uncovering Immigration Enforcement Agency Databases

The Council filed multiple Freedom of Information Act requests to unearth the systems that the government uses in immigration enforcement and the data it collects.
  • Amicus Briefs

Supporting Detained Individual’s Right to Access ICE Detention Records through a State FOIA Request

February 26, 2021
In the amicus brief, the Council and partners reject Calhoun County's position to withhold records that otherwise would be released under the Michigan state FOIA.
  • Declaration

Council Submits Declaration in Deportation Moratorium Case, Explaining the Complex System of Enforcement and Removal

February 12, 2021
The Council submitted this declaration in support of the ACLU's defense of the Biden Administration's moratorium on deportations. This declaration explains how the removal and detention system works.
  • FOIA

Demanding Records on the Unlawful Detention, Expulsion and Deportation of Migrant Youth During the COVID-19 Pandemic

This request would show whether CBP is violating statutory protections intended for these youth.
  • Amicus Briefs

Stopping the Destruction of ICE's Records on Abuse and Mistreatment of People in Detention

August 7, 2020
In the amicus brief, the Council and partners documented the reliance on these records by researchers and advocates to monitor and expose troubling practices.
  • Amicus Briefs

Council Files Amicus Brief Supporting the Release of Individuals from Immigration Detention During the COVID-19 Pandemic

May 12, 2020
The American Immigration Council filed this amicus curiae brief in support of individuals who sought release from detention due to their significant risk of infection from COVID-19.
  • FOIA Litigation

Council Sues ICE to Make ICE COVID-19 Plans Public

The American Immigration Council filed a lawsuit after Immigrant Customs Enforcement (ICE) failed to respond to a Freedom of Information...

  • Practice Advisories

Introduction to Habeas Corpus

June 1, 2008

This Practice Advisory offers a short introduction to habeas corpus, addressing when and how a petitioner may file a petition for writ of habeas corpus in the immigration context.

  • Blog

ICE Spread COVID-19 Across the Country, Not Just in Immigration Detention Centers

May 26, 2021

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) mishandled the coronavirus outbreak in detention centers so badly that it not only lead to horrific conditions and deaths among people in its custody...

  • Blog

It’s Time for Real Alternatives to Immigration Detention

May 7, 2021

Every year the U.S. government locks up thousands of non-citizens in a prison system few Americans know about—the immigration detention system. Though immigration detention is termed “civil”...

  • Blog

Firsthand Experiences Inside ICE Facilities During the Pandemic Underscore Why Immigration Detention Should be Abolished

April 22, 2021

This blog is the second in a three-part series examining President Biden’s first 100 days in office from the Immigration Justice Campaign. Many of us will always vividly remember the fear and lack...

  • Blog

The First 100 Days: Biden on Immigration Detention

April 20, 2021

This blog is the first in a three-part series from the Immigration Justice Campaign. Reflecting on his release from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody, Thomas,* a man who fled...

  • Blog

Arizona ICE Detention Center Violated COVID-19 Safety Protocols by Refusing to Provide Masks or Enforce Social Distancing

April 6, 2021

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centers—which often suffer from cramped conditions and poor access to medical care—are highly conducive to the spread of COVID-19. But ICE...

  • Blog

How Many ICE-Related COVID-19 Deaths Have Gone Unreported?

March 26, 2021

After almost two years in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody, Martin Vargas Arellano was released to a hospital on March 5. ICE did not notify his family or attorney. Three...

  • Blog

What’s Not Being Said About the Border

March 23, 2021

The current situation at the U.S.-Mexico border—including the rise in immigrant children in U.S. government custody—has captured the nation’s attention in recent weeks. Much of the conversation...

  • Blog

ICE’s New Case Review Process Lets Immigrants Appeal Detention and Deportation

March 9, 2021

The Biden administration announced new “enforcement priorities” for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on February 18. The priorities were an initial step away from the Trump administration...

  • Blog

New Data Shows the Landscape of Community Support Services to Replace Immigration Detention

March 2, 2021

The U.S. government has long relied on a punitive and outdated detention system to keep immigrants in its custody. Even when U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) places people on...

  • Blog

ICE’s Changes to Family Detention Are an Improvement but Don’t Go Far Enough

March 2, 2021

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced last week that it would make changes to two family detention centers in Texas that would result in families spending less time in detention...

  • Press Release

Biden Budget Request on Immigration is a Missed Opportunity for Meaningful Change

May 28, 2021
The Biden administration disclosed today a $54.2 billion budget request for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for fiscal year 2022. The request is is deeply disappointing and a missed opportunity to set immigration enforcement in the United States on a new path.
  • Press Release

Facts About the Current Situation at the Border

March 23, 2021
The nation has turned its attention to the current situation at the U.S.-Mexico border, including the rise in immigrant children in U.S. government custody. Much of the conversation has focused on a supposed surge in arrivals under the Biden administration, but the current increase began well before President Biden took office.
  • Press Release

Federal Court Finds Conditions in Customs and Border Protection Detention Facilities Unconstitutional

February 19, 2020
A federal court ordered U.S. Customs and Border Protection to overhaul the way the agency detains people in its custody in the Tucson Sector. The court found that the conditions in CBP holding cells, especially those that preclude sleep over several nights, are presumptively punitive and violate the U.S. Constitution.
  • Press Release

Trial Challenging Unconstitutional Conditions in Customs and Border Protection's Facilities in Arizona Ends

January 23, 2020
During the course of the trial, a federal judge heard from qualified experts who testified on the inadequate medical care and severe conditions inside CBP detention centers.
  • Press Release

Increase in Border Prosecutions Will Separate More Families

May 7, 2018
Attorney General Jeff Sessions and Immigration and Customs Enforcement acting Director Thomas Homan announced today that the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security will be stepping up prosecutions of individuals along the southern border—likely resulting in the criminalization of asylum seekers and more family separation.
  • Press Release

ICE Formalizes Inhumane Detention Policies for Pregnant Women

March 29, 2018
The practice of detaining pregnant women is inhumane and unsafe.
  • Press Release

ICE Settles Case Challenging Interference with Legal Representation at Dilley

August 16, 2017
The parties in Dilley Pro Bono Project v. ICE have reached a settlement that ensures access to mental health evaluations for certain detained mothers and children seeking asylum.
  • Press Release

Court Orders Government to Fix Inhumane Conditions in Border Patrol Holding Cells

November 18, 2016
A federal district court found that U.S. Customs and Border Protection is violating the constitutional rights of people detained in holding facilities in Arizona and ordered the government to take steps to improve conditions in these facilities, known as hieleras.
  • Press Release

Court Orders Release of Graphic Photos of Arizona Border Patrol Detention Facilities and Damning Expert Witness Testimony

August 18, 2016
Today, groups made public damning evidence, including expert testimony and video stills illustrating the deplorable and unconstitutional conditions detained individuals are subjected to in Border Patrol custody in the agency’s Tucson Sector.
  • Press Release

Homeland Security Secretary Announces Changes to Family Detention Policies

July 20, 2016
Secretary of Homeland Security Jeh Johnson released a statement on plans to make “substantial changes” to the agency’s family detention policies. The following is a statement, in response, from Ben Johnson, Executive Director of the American Immigration Council.
  • Litigation

Council Sues Immigration Agencies for Records of Enforcement Databases

This Freedom of Information Act lawsuit seeks to uncover information about the databases and systems that Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agencies use in immigration enforcement.
  • Press Release

Biden Budget Request on Immigration is a Missed Opportunity for Meaningful Change

May 28, 2021
The Biden administration disclosed today a $54.2 billion budget request for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for fiscal year 2022. The request is is deeply disappointing and a missed opportunity to set immigration enforcement in the United States on a new path.
  • Amicus Briefs

Council Files Amicus Brief on the Legality of Prolonged Mandatory Detention

May 27, 2021
The amicus brief in Ayom v. Garland urges the eighth circuit to affirm that mandatory detention has constitutional limits, and reject the endorsement of prolonged mandatory detention for people in removal proceedings.
  • Blog

ICE Spread COVID-19 Across the Country, Not Just in Immigration Detention Centers

May 26, 2021

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) mishandled the coronavirus outbreak in detention centers so badly that it not only lead to horrific conditions and deaths among people in its custody...

  • Special Report

Tracking the Biden Agenda on Immigration Enforcement

May 20, 2021
This report analyzes the Biden administration's 100 days progress in reforming immigration enforcement and recommendations for how to best move forward.
  • FOIA

Scrutinizing the Treatment and Conditions Black Immigrants Face in Detention

The Council and Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI) are investigating the abuse and mistreatment of Black immigrants in ICE detention facilities located in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.
  • Blog

It’s Time for Real Alternatives to Immigration Detention

May 7, 2021

Every year the U.S. government locks up thousands of non-citizens in a prison system few Americans know about—the immigration detention system. Though immigration detention is termed “civil”...

  • Letters

Council and Broad Coalition Urge Department of Homeland Security to Withdraw Records Destruction Plans

May 3, 2021
In this letter, the Council and a diverse coalition call on the Biden administration to stop and reevaluate plans to destroy immigration agency records documenting abuse and misconduct.
  • Blog

Firsthand Experiences Inside ICE Facilities During the Pandemic Underscore Why Immigration Detention Should be Abolished

April 22, 2021

This blog is the second in a three-part series examining President Biden’s first 100 days in office from the Immigration Justice Campaign. Many of us will always vividly remember the fear and lack...

  • Blog

The First 100 Days: Biden on Immigration Detention

April 20, 2021

This blog is the first in a three-part series from the Immigration Justice Campaign. Reflecting on his release from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody, Thomas,* a man who fled...

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