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

COMPLAINT
  • Research and Analysis
Complaint Urges Investigation Into Misuse of Solitary Confinement in Colorado Immigration Detention Center

Complaint Urges Investigation Into Misuse of Solitary Confinement in Colorado Immigration Detention Center

We demand an investigation into ICE's use of solitary confinement to punish and control people detained at the Aurora Detention Center in Colorado.

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FACT SHEET
  • Research and Analysis
Alternatives to Immigration Detention: An Overview

Alternatives to Immigration Detention: An Overview

The United States can and should implement alternatives to detention that serve to reduce the overall detention population.

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All Detention Content

  • FOIA Litigation

After Filing Suit, Council Releases Records Describing ICE’s Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic

The American Immigration Council filed a lawsuit after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) failed to timely respond to the Council’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request.

The...

  • 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.
  • FOIA

Requesting ICE Records About Detained Individuals at Risk of Exposure to COVID-19

This request seeks information that will enhance the public’s understanding of steps ICE has taken to protect detained individuals from an outbreak of COVID-19.
  • Legal Resources and Litigation

Statement for the House Subcommittee on Oversight, Management, & Accountability "Hearing on Oversight of ICE Detention Facilities: Is DHS Doing Enough?"

September 25, 2019
This statement shares our knowledge about these problems and inform the Subcommittee of these systemic human rights and due process violations. We hope that our perspective provides insight context for this important hearing.
  • FOIA Litigation

FOIA Lawsuit Demands Release of Information on the Institutional Hearing Program

This FOIA lawsuit sought information from the EOIR on the Institutional Hearing Program (IHP), which it runs jointly with ICE and the Bureau of Prisons (BOP).
  • Advocacy

Statement for the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Hearing on "The Implications of Reinterpretation of the Flores Settlement for Border Security and Illegal Immigration Incentives"

September 18, 2018

The American Immigration Council and American Immigration Lawyers Association submitted a written statement to the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and...

  • FOIA

Family Separation FOIA Request

The requests ask for policies, guidelines, or procedures followed or used by the governmental agencies to address the processing and treatment of families at the U.S.-Mexico border and specifically, the separation of adult family members from minor children and the criminal prosecution of adult family members.
  • Litigation

Challenging Immigration Judges' Refusal to Conduct Bond Hearings

This lawsuit challenges the actions of immigration judges in Charlotte, North Carolina who have refused to conduct bond hearings for people who properly file bond motions with the Charlotte Immigration Court.
  • Amicus Briefs

Jennings v. Rodriguez - Ninth Circuit

Publication Date: 
October 25, 2016
The American Immigration Council, in collaboration with the American Immigration Law Association, filed an amicus brief in the case Jennings v. Rodriguez, calling for the Court to overturn Demore v. Kim and end mandatory detention.
  • Litigation

Challenging Unconstitutional Conditions in CBP Detention Facilities

The class-action lawsuit complaint alleges that Tucson Sector Border Patrol holds men, women, and children in freezing, overcrowded, and filthy cells for days at a time in violation of the U.S. Constitution and CBP’s own policies.
  • Blog

Appellate Court Finds California’s Private Prison Ban Is Likely Unconstitutional

October 6, 2022

An appellate court recently ruled that California’s state law banning private prisons—including immigration detention centers—is likely unconstitutional. The decision is a significant blow to...

  • Blog

Bond Hearings for Asylum Seekers Are Latest Casualty of the Recent Supreme Court Term

August 2, 2022

For almost two decades, asylum seekers taken into Border Patrol custody who passed a “credible fear” interview have been eligible to seek release from detention on bond while they go through the...

  • Blog

Biden Released His Budget for 2023 – What Does it Mean for Immigration Issues?  

April 8, 2022

Every year, the president submits a budget request to Congress with their proposal for funding the federal government. Over the last 20 years, Congress has spent over $333 billion on immigration...

  • Blog

DHS Watchdog Recommends Immediate Action to Address Horrific Conditions in ICE Detention

March 22, 2022

In an unprecedented move, the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS’) watchdog agency—the Office of the Inspector General (OIG)—just recommended that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE...

  • Blog

COVID-19 Rates in ICE Detention Are at Record Highs. Advocates Are Demanding an Investigation.

February 14, 2022

The Omicron variant has spread through immigration detention like wildfire, with a record 14% of people in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody testing positive for COVID-19 as...

  • Blog

Leaked Photos Reveal Inhumane Conditions in Border Processing Centers

January 14, 2022

New leaked photos of Border Patrol stations in Yuma, Arizona show Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) inhumane treatment of people apprehended at the border— revealing that years of overcrowded...

  • Blog

Supreme Court Hears Arguments Addressing the Legality of Detention Without Bond

January 12, 2022

Written by Caroline Walters and Kate Melloy Goettel  This week the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in two related immigration cases. Each asks whether certain noncitizens are entitled to bond...

  • Blog

Immigration Detention and Enforcement Are a Mixed Bag in Biden’s First Year

December 17, 2021

Immigration detention and enforcement in the United States under the first year of the Biden administration has been a mixture of improvements and setbacks. The Trump administration implemented...

  • 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...

  • Press Release

Court Orders Release of Some Evidence of Arizona Border Patrol Detention Facilities

June 27, 2016
A federal district court unsealed some of the photographs central to ongoing litigation challenging deplorable and unconstitutional conditions in Border Patrol detention facilities in the agency’s Tucson Sector. The court also allowed the Arizona Republic newspaper to intervene in the case to argue for the release of the documents.
  • Press Release

Government Shows No Signs of Backing Down on Family Detention

May 14, 2016

Washington D.C. - Yesterday, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced efforts to “enhance oversight” to help ensure that families are detained in “safe and humane facilities” and

  • Press Release

Central American Mothers Targeted in Immigration Raids and Still Detained Pen Letter to Obama

January 28, 2016

DILLEY, Texas – Seven women picked up and detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in early January in widely publicized raids have made a direct and personal plea to Pre

  • Press Release

Court Rejects Government’s Efforts to Dismiss Lawsuit Challenging Detention Conditions

January 13, 2016

Washington D.C.—On Monday, a federal district court permitted a class action lawsuit challenging harmful and unconstitutional conditions of confinement by Customs and Border Protection (CBP)

  • Press Release

Government Continues Incarcerating Mothers and Children Despite Judge’s Ruling

October 23, 2015

Washington, D.C.–Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), the American Immigration Council, Refugee andImmigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES), and the American Immigr

  • Press Release

Immigrant Rights Advocates Sue to Reveal Policies and Procedures at Artesia Family Detention Facility

October 21, 2015

Washington D.C. - Immigrant rights groups today filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) litigation to compel the

  • Press Release

Just-Released Customs and Border Protection Standards Still Lack Accountability

October 5, 2015

Washington, D.C. — Today, U.S.

  • Press Release

Coercion and Intimidation of Detained Mothers and Children Must Stop

September 30, 2015

Today, Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), the American Immigration Council, Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES), and the American Immigration Lawyers As

  • Press Release

Obama Administration Again Hands Families Over to Private Prison Company

September 18, 2015

Washington, DC – Today, Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), the American Immigration Council, Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services (RAICES), and the America

  • Press Release

Department of Justice's Shameful Attempt to Pretty up Family Detention Comes up Woefully Short

August 27, 2015

Washington, DC – The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) and the American Immigration Council (Council) are outraged by the U.S.

  • Blog

Stays in CBP Custody Are Getting Longer Due to ‘Phone Booth Asylum’ Policy

July 21, 2023

“I never thought I’d say there’s anything worse than ICE custody, but this is it.” That’s an immigration attorney in San Diego talking to CNN about the shelter facilities run by U.S. Customs and...

  • Blog

New Complaint Shows ICE’s Use of Solitary Confinement Is Excessive

July 14, 2023

“If I spoke too loudly, solitary. If I climbed on top of a table to get a guard’s attention, solitary. If I had suicidal thoughts, solitary. When the guards would tease me about being deported...

  • Research and Analysis

Alternatives to Immigration Detention: An Overview

Publication Date: 
July 11, 2023
This fact sheet provides an overview of the wide range of programs that provide alternatives to detention (ATDs) and run the gamut from no governmental intervention to extensive surveillance and...
  • Blog

Florida Wants All New Migrants Arriving at the Border Locked Up. The Courts are Helping.

June 15, 2023

Florida officials think the federal government must detain everyone – or virtually everyone – who arrives at the U.S.-Mexico border without a visa. And it is using the courts to try to make that...

  • Blog

Internal Investigation Shows Appalling Carelessness from Border Patrol Led to Death of 8-Year-Old

June 9, 2023

An internal investigation into the death of a medically vulnerable eight-year-old girl after over a week in Border Patrol custody continues to reveal shocking negligence on the part of medical...

  • 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

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...

  • Blog

States Lead the Way in Banning Immigration Detention Centers

March 10, 2023

State governments are leading the way on eliminating a blemish from their communities—immigration detention centers. As some state governments begin their legislative sessions, bills attempting to...

  • Blog

6 Firsthand Stories That Reveal the Problem with Family Detention

March 8, 2023

Written by Atenas Burrola, Pro Bono Manager and Crystal Massey, National Pro Bono Coordinator for the Afghan Project at the American Immigration Council The Biden administration is reportedly...

  • Blog

This Is Pretty Simple, Mr. President: Don’t Restart Family Detention

March 7, 2023

The Biden administration is reportedly planning to detain large numbers of immigrant families again this spring. This is part of the administration’s plan to replace Title 42 with a new policy...

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