The American Civil Liberties Union reports at their website the case of Alejandro Rodriguez who lost three years of his life where Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) locked him up without a bond hearing, despite that he posed no flight risk or danger to the community.

We went to court to challenge his detention, and Alejandro eventually won his immigration case after an immigration judge ruled that he need not be deported for his relatively minor convictions.  But Alejandro lost three years of his life, and time with his children, for no reason.

The ACLU made their dissatisfaction with current immigration proceedings quite clear and stated after their victory

This week, we won a victory against one of the most draconian features of our immigration detention system: the government’s practice of putting immigrants like Alejandro in long-term lockup while they fight their immigration cases, without ever holding a bond hearing to determine if they should be behind bars in the first place.  In Rodriguez v. Hayes, a federal district court ordered bond hearings for hundreds of immigrant detainees in the Los Angeles area, where the government will finally have to prove that their imprisonment is justified.

This ruling reaffirms that no one should be locked up for months or years without a hearing to determine if their detention is actually justified. Only with the help of skilled immigration lawyers, an immigration hearing could be scheduled and Rodriguez as a result could finally go free. What’s more, the judge decided that there was no grounds for deportation at all.

To avoid that such events will happen in the first place, anyone in ICE detention should consult with an immigration lawyer at the very first convenience. The immigration lawyer can not only help to get the detainee out of detention on bond quickly, he will also help the entire immigration case and increase the chances for a positive outcome.

El post Challenging ICE Detention – The Case Of Alejandro Rodriguez apareció primero en Help With Immigration Bonds.

According to http://fronterasdesk.org/news/2013/feb/27/release-ice-detainees-draws-mixed-reaction/

A decision by Immigration and Customs Enforcement to release hundreds of immigrants from its custody who are awaiting deportation proceedings has sparked mixed reactions.

The agency says it took the cost-saving step in order to stay within budget because of the looming possibility of sequestration.

On Tuesday, ICE released figures that 303 immigrants have been moved in recent days from Arizona detention facilities to less costly forms of supervised release. The releases represent less than 12 percent of the total number of immigrants detained in Arizona.

Immigrants have been released from facilities all over the country, but national figures could not be confirmed by ICE on Tuesday. The agency instead said it has “reviewed several hundred cases.”

Not surprisingly, this move immediately drew criticism from several, including AZ governor Jan Brewer and Senator Jeff Flake. According to the governor, releasing detainees at this point was “the height of absurdity” since sequestration cuts have not yet taken effect.

While this is certainly a big relief for all those who were in custody, facing freedom entirely unexpectedly, it is important to note that the persons released will still face deportation proceedings in immigration court. It should also be noted that those affected by this wave of releases are considered “minor offenders” where officials did not see a risk for evading court proceedings as a result of their release.

The vast majority of ICE detainees today will still have to follow proper legal procedures for a release on bond.

El post Budget cuts make ICE release hundreds of detainees across the country apareció primero en Help With Immigration Bonds.