Ninth Circuit Reversed and Remanded District Court’s Ruling that Immigration Detainers Issued Based on Unreliable Databases Violates the Fourth Amendment

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) issues immigration detainers “to advise another law enforcement agency that the Department seeks custody of an [individual] presently in the custody of that agency, for the purpose of arresting and removing the [individual].” The immigration detainer requests that local law enforcement notify ICE “prior to the release of the [individual], in order for the Department to arrange to assume custody.” Immigration detainers have been subject to litigation arising out of Fourth Amendment concerns because detainers are not reviewed by detached neutral judicial officials. To issue an immigration detainer, an ICE officer simply needs to fill out a checkbox form indicating that they have “probable cause” that an individual is removable. This post was originally published on the Cardozo Arts & Entertainment Law Journal website on November 2, 2020. The original post can be accessed via the Archived Link button above