Agencies and resources involved:
This seven-day operation, the largest of its kind, involved the collaboration of more than 500 ICE agents and officers, as well as coordination with the U.S. Marshals Service (USMS), the U.S. Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (USPIS), and our state and local law enforcement partners throughout the United States.
What happens to those arrested? They will be held in "ICE jails."
Last week, the Third Circuit ruled four federal officials are entitled to immunity from claims of abusive immigration raids conducted under the "Operation Return to Sender" program. According to the Complaint:
[T]he majority of individuals arrested in New Jersey under Operation Return to Sender are neither criminals or fugitives....In fact, 87 percent of the people arrested through the raids in 2007 had no criminal history, and just one in three arrestees was "actually a fugitive alien.
A few days ago, ICE sent out a memo on prosecutorial discretion. After listing factors that may warrant the exercise of discretion, it contains this disclaimer:
As there is no right to the favorable exercise of discretion by the agency, nothing in this memorandum should be construed to prohibit the apprehension, detention, or removal of any alien unlawfully in the United States or to limit the legal authority of ICE or any of its personnel to enforce federal immigration law.
Similarly, this memorandum, which may be modified, superseded, or rescinded at any time without notice, is not intended to, does not, and may not be relied upon to create any right or benefit, substantive or procedural, enforceable at law by any party in any administrative, civil, or criminal matter.
A new report on immigrant detention centers by Human Rights Watch finds:
[T]ransfers separate detained immigrants, including legal permanent residents, refugees, and undocumented people, from the attorneys, witnesses, and evidence they need to defend against deportation. That can violate their right to fair treatment in court, slow down asylum or deportation proceedings, and extend their time in detention.
Whatever happened to the path to legalization and respect for family unification? I think it's time for ICE to undergo a meltdown.
If you have a grievance with ICE, here's how to file a complaint.
