Detention

Conditions in Border Facilities Deny Asylum Seekers Meaningful Screening Interviews
In U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) custody, asylum seekers are detained in horribly cold and overcrowded facilities, unable to sleep, without access to food, water, or adequate medical care, and without access to an attorney. Under two new government processes—the Prompt Asylum Claim Review (PACR) and the Humanitarian Asylum… Read More

Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center v. Wolf
The American Immigration Council and the American Immigration Lawyers Association submitted an amicus brief in Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center v. Wolf, a case filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Texas, the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project, and ACLU of the District of Columbia. The amicus brief urges the… Read More

A Humanitarian Catastrophe at the Border: One Year of the ‘Migrant Protection Protocols’
One year ago today, a confused Honduran man seeking asylum in the United States became the first person to be turned away from the border and sent back to Mexico to await a U.S. court hearing. He would become the first of nearly 60,000 people subjected… Read More

Lawmakers Call for Release of All Transgender Migrants From ICE Custody
Lawmakers on Capitol Hill sent a letter to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) this month demanding the release of all transgender people in ICE’s custody. At least two transgender women have died in the last two years. Both died following multiple, ignored requests for medical attention in… Read More

Trial Challenging Unconstitutional Conditions in Customs and Border Protection’s Facilities in Arizona Ends
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. Read More

On Trial: Inhumane Conditions in Customs and Border Protection Facilities in Arizona
After more than four years of gathering evidence of the substandard conditions in the government’s short-term detention facilities in Arizona’s Tucson Sector, a case challenging these conditions called Doe v. Wolf went to trial on Monday. Over the course of the trial, plaintiffs will show how… Read More

Immigration Groups Challenge Inhumane Conditions Inside U.S. Border Patrol Detention Facilities in Court
The trial in a legal challenge to the horrific conditions in U.S. Border Patrol's short-term detention facilities across the Tucson sector, filed in June 2015 by immigration groups, begins on Monday, Jan. 13 at the U.S. District Court in Tucson, Arizona. Read More

The Decade Ends with Another Death in Immigration Detention
The government closed out the decade with yet another person’s death in immigration detention. Fiscal year 2019 was one of the most fatal years on the books for immigrants held in the custody of both Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Eight people died while… Read More

Immigration Detention in the United States by Agency
This fact sheet describes the populations, duration, and conditions for noncitizens detained in the United States by department. Read More

Thousands in ICE Detention Sue Private Prison Company for Forced Labor
A recent federal court ruling in California could allow hundreds of thousands of immigrants currently and previously detained by private prison companies to demand compensation and damages for work completed behind bars under threat of retaliation. The decision follows a series of lawsuits filed against GEO… Read More
Make a contribution
Make a direct impact on the lives of immigrants.
