Detention
FOIA Documents Show Troubling Gaps in Transparency at Torrance County Detention Facility
The Torrance County Detention Facility, located in the remote deserts of New Mexico, is notorious for its mistreatment of migrants. The facility’s issues are compounded by the fact that Torrance has largely operated in secrecy. However, documents and data uncovered through a FOIA request have provided a glimpse into ICE… Read More
ICE’s Faulty Detention Data Undercounts the Number of People in Its Custody
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) appears to be severely undercounting the number of people it has in immigration detention. A new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO)—a congressional oversight agency—published last week found that ICE’s data contained glaring mistakes, leading to a significant undercount of people in… Read More
Do 287(g) Agreements with ICE Make Communities Safer?
Written by Juan Avilez, Policy Associate for State and Local Initiatives and Raul Pinto, Deputy Legal Director Texas’ SB4 set the tone for the national discourse around immigration enforcement. Since then, certain states have felt emboldened to create their own immigration enforcement regimes, like Iowa and Oklahoma, which enacted equally… Read More
CeBONDS One Year After its Implementation
Written by Raul Pinto & Laila Khan Approximately one year ago, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) launched Cash Electronic Bonds (CeBONDS), a web portal with the stated intent improving how people pay bonds to ICE to secure the release of a loved one from detention. One year in, it’s clear… Read More
Differences in State Sunshine Laws Can Threaten Transparency Around Immigration Detention and Enforcement
By Tsion Gurmu, Legal Director at the Black Alliance for Just Immigration and Raul Pinto, Deputy Legal Director of Transparency The main way in which the public can access information about what the federal government is doing is through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). However, laws that allow the… Read More
Despite Progress, the Tragedy of Family Separation Can Never Be Undone
Six years ago, a man came to the U.S./Mexico border with his five-year-old daughter, looking for safety in the United States. At home, a rival political faction had been making death threats against him and his family. That compelled him to take his daughter to the United… Read More
Showdown Between Texas Authorities and the Federal Government Headed to the Supreme Court
By Kate Melloy Goettel and Juan Avilez A Texas law that allows local law enforcement to arrest migrants, state court judges to issue removal orders, and state officials to remove migrants to Mexico, is on its… Read More
ICE Subjected Immigrants in Detention to Unnecessary Surgeries, Report Finds
The Office of Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (OIG) published a report last month finding that nearly one-third of medical procedures performed on immigrants in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody were not properly authorized. The report found that ICE improperly authorized 32% of… Read More
White House Leans Into Trump-Era Immigration Policy Changes to Get Ukraine Aid
The Biden administration signaled on December 12 that it is willing to make disastrous—and permanent—changes to asylum and immigration policy to obtain temporary military aid for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan. Top White House officials reportedly met with some of the key Senate negotiators, Sen. James Lankford (R-OK), Sen. Chris… Read More
New Board of Immigration Appeals Decision Sets Roadblock for Cubans, Others Seeking Green Cards
A recent Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) decision bars certain recently arrived noncitizens from becoming lawful permanent residents. In Matter of Cabrera-Fernandez, the BIA held that the petitioner had not been paroled into the United States when the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released… Read More
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