Featured Issue: Representing Clients Before ICE
This resource page combines resources for attorneys representing clients before ICE. For information about why AILA is calling for the reduction and phasing out of immigration detention, please see our Featured Issue Page: Immigration Detention and Alternatives to Detention.
Quick Links
- Seeking Stays of Removal
- AILA Practice Pointers and Alerts (continually updated)
- Practice Advisory: Representing Detained Clients in the Virtual Landscape
- Practice Pointer: How to Locate Clients Apprehended by ICE
- Practice Pointer: Preparing for an Order of Supervision Appointment with ICE-ERO
- AILA ICE Liaison Agenda and Meeting Minutes
Communicating with OPLA, ERO, and CROs
The Office of the Principal Legal Advisor (OPLA) includes 1300 attorneys who represent the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in immigration removal proceedings before the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). OPLA litigates all removal cases as well as provides legal counsel to ICE personnel. At present, there are 25 field locations throughout the United States.
Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) manages all aspects of immigration enforcement from arrest, detention, and removal. ERO has 24 field office locations. ERO also manages an “alternative to detention” program that relies almost exclusively on the “Intensive Supervision Appearance Program (ISAP)” to monitor individuals in removal proceedings.
Since 2016, ICE has had an Office of Partnership and Engagement (formerly Office of Community Engagement) to be a link between the agency and stakeholders. As part of this office, Community Relations Officers (CROS) are assigned to every field office to work with local stakeholders such as attorneys and nonprofit organizations.
*Headquarters does not provide direct contact numbers or emails for individual employees.* (AILA Liaison Meeting with ICE on April 26, 2023)(AILA Doc. No. 23033004). However, attorneys can contact Chapter Local ICE Liaisons as they may have this information provided to them via local liaison engagement.
- DHS/ICE/OPLA Chief Counsel Contact Information [last updated in 2024, this list no longer appears on ICE.gov as of 1/27/25]
- Contact Information for Local OPLA Offices [last updated in 2024, this information no longer appears on ICE.gov as of 1/27/25]
- ERO Field Offices Contact Information*
- OPE Community Relations Officers
- ICE Check-In Scheduling Website
- ICE Online Change of Address Website
Latest on Enforcement Priorities & Prosecutorial Discretion
Executive Order 14159 (90 FR 8443, 1/29/25) directs DHS to set priorities that protect the public safety and national security interests of the American people, including by ensuring the successful enforcement of final orders of removal, enforcement of the INA and other Federal laws related to the illegal entry and unlawful presence of [noncitizens] in the United States and the enforcement of the purposes of this order. Given the January 25, 2025, confirmation of DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, a memorandum detailing enforcement priorities may be issued in the coming weeks.
An unpublished ICE memo from acting ICE Director Caleb Vitello entitled “Interim Guidance: Civil Immigration Enforcement Actions in or near Courthouses” makes reference to targeted noncitizens and includes:
- National security or public safety threats;
- Those with criminal convictions;
- Gang members;
- Those who have been ordered removed from the United States but have failed to depart; and/or
- Those who have re-entered the country illegally after being removed.
Procedures and email inboxes created under the Biden Administration to request Prosecutorial Discretion no longer appear on the ICE website. AILA members are encouraged to review current DOJ regulations entitled “Efficient Case and Docket Management in Immigration Proceedings” for alternative basis for seeking termination or administrative closure.
Access to Counsel
- ERO eFile:
- An online system developed to electronically file G-28s with ERO. Attorneys and accredited representatives may register for ERO eFile accounts and may also sponsor law students and law graduates who work under their supervision. See AILA’s practice alert (AILA Doc. No. 24051506) for more information.
- ICE Attorney Information and Resources Page
- AILA Practice Alert: Updates to the ICE Attorney Information and Resource Page
Filing Administrative Complaints on Behalf of Detained and Formerly Detained Clients
- Online Intake Form for the Detention Ombudsman (myOIDO)
- Available for complaints for issues in ICE and CBP Custody nationwide, including to submit complaints about access to counsel problems on behalf of currently or previously detained clients.
- Online Complaint Form for DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties (CRCL)
- Oversight of Immigration Detention: An Overview - May 16, 2022
(provides a list of agencies with which attorneys may file administrative complaints of detention center violations) - Immigration Judge Complaint Toolkit – August 31, 2022
- Practice Alert: Template for CRCL Complaint Regarding Failures to Provide Language Access – July 16, 2021
Selected ICE Policies and Current Status
For comprehensive comparison of current and prior ICE policies, please review the “Immigration Policy Tracker (IPTP).” The IPTP is a project of Professor Lucas Guttentag working with teams of Stanford and Yale law students and leading national immigration experts.
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Browse the Featured Issue: Representing Clients Before ICE collection
BIA Reverses Denial of Motion to Change Venue from Dallas to New York
Unpublished BIA decision grants interlocutory appeal and reverses denial of motion to change venue given that respondent’s family and pro bono attorney were located in New York. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Vasquez-Molina, 8/13/19)
EOIR to Open Immigration Court in Sacramento, CA
EOIR announced it will be opening an immigration court in Sacramento, California, on September 3, 2019. Notice includes the court’s location, contact information, and hours of operation.
TRAC Report Shows ICE Secure Communities Removals Declining
A TRAC report shows that the number of Secure Communities deportations has been trending downward during the past year, falling to 6,152 in 4/19, compared to 7,456 in 5/18. The number of removals by community are reflective of individual communities’ policies regarding cooperation with ICE.
CA3 Finds BIA Misapplied Modified Categorical Approach to Petitioner’s Pennsylvania Conviction
The court held that the BIA incorrectly applied the modified categorical approach in determining that the Pennsylvania state crime of which petitioner was convicted constituted either an aggravated felony or a conviction relating to a controlled substance. (Hillocks v. Att’y Gen., 8/12/19)
CA3 Says “Particularly Serious Crime” Is Not Limited to Aggravated Felonies in Asylum or Withholding of Removal Context
The court held that, in the asylum and withholding of removal context, aggravated felonies are a subset of particularly serious crimes, and found that petitioner’s Delaware second-degree unlawful imprisonment conviction was a particularly serious crime. (Bastardo-Vale v. Att’y Gen., 8/12/19)
FAQs After Federal Court Requires Immigration Courts to Continue to Provide Bond Hearings, Despite Matter of M-S-
The American Immigration Council, and its partners, the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project and the ACLU, issued FAQs after a district court judge issued a decision modifying an existing preliminary injunction in Padilla v. U.S., requiring immigration courts to provide bond hearings.
AILA: Massive Raid Adds to Migrant Fears, Endangers Due Process
On August 7, 2019, the administration executed a massive single-state worksite enforcement raid; AILA Executive Director Ben Johnson noted, “This raid was launched with no regard for the fundamental principles of due process that are the foundation of the American justice system.”
DOJ Announces Certain Previously Detained Noncitizens with Small Children Were Released
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Mississippi announced that following ICE's enforcement action on 8/7/19 in Mississippi, certain noncitizens with small children were released on humanitarian grounds.
BIA Holds Florida Statute Not Sexual Abuse of a Minor or a Crime of Child Abuse
Unpublished BIA decision holds that traveling to seduce/solicit/entice a child to commit a sex act under Fla. Stat. 847.0135(4)(a) is not sexual abuse of a minor or a crime of child abuse. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Mesidor, 8/8/19)
BIA Reverses Denial of Continuance Due to Withdrawal of Prior Attorney
Unpublished BIA decision holds IJ should have continued proceedings where respondent was not served with his prior attorney’s motion to withdraw or the decision granting the motion nine days prior to the individual hearing. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Cisse, 8/7/19)
Practice Alert: U Visas — Updated Guide for Law Enforcement Certifiers and New Directive on Stay Requests
This practice alert provides information on the updated U visa guide for law enforcement certifiers and on the new ICE directive regarding requests for stays of removal for U visa petitioners.
El Paso Immigration Collaborative (EPIC) Seeks to Change the Asylum Landscape for Detained Immigrants
The Immigration Justice Campaign, along with local and national partners, launched the El Paso Immigration Collaborative (EPIC). EPIC seeks to increase legal representation for detained immigrants around El Paso and promote oversight of the immigration courts and detention centers in the region.
CA6 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Former Guatemalan Taxi Driver Who Was Threatened by Gangs
The court concluded that the BIA did not err in finding that the petitioner, a taxi driver who lived in a poppy-producing region of Guatemala and who had been threatened by gang members, had failed to articulate a particular social group. (Gonzalez-De Leon v. Barr, 8/5/19)
CA11 Remands Asylum Claims of Pakistani Petitioner Who Practices Ahmadiyya Islam
The court granted the petition for review of the BIA’s denial of asylum to the Pakistani petitioner, a practitioner of Ahmadiyya Islam, finding that the BIA did not afford the case reasoned consideration and ignored highly relevant evidence of past persecution. (Ali v. Att’y Gen., 8/5/19)
AILA and Partners Submit Amicus Brief on Judicial Alteration of a Criminal Conviction or Sentence
AILA and partners submitted an amicus brief arguing that the attorney general's invitation is overbroad and that any new rule must be limited to the particularities of Georgia's sentencing law. Matter of Thomas and Matter of Thompson, 27 I&N Dec. 556 (A.G. 2019)
ICE FAQs on Revised Guidance on Stay of Removal Request Reviews for U Visa Petitioners
ICE provides FAQs on ICE Directive 11005.2, which revises prior guidance from 2009 on stay of removal request reviews for U visa petitioners to allow ICE to use its discretion when determining whether to grant a stay of removal request based on the totality of circumstances.
CA9 Says Petitioner’s Oregon Conviction for Strangulation Is Categorically a Crime of Violence
The court held that the petitioner’s conviction in Oregon for strangulation was categorically a crime of violence aggravated felony that rendered him removable and ineligible for asylum. (Flores-Vega v. Barr, 8/2/19)
CA8 Says Iowa Forgery Conviction Is an Aggravated Felony
The court held that the BIA did not err in concluding that the petitioner’s Iowa forgery conviction constituted an aggravated felony, and found that DHS did not violate the petitioner’s due process rights. (Salazar v. Barr, 8/1/19)
CA3 Remands Where Petitioners Contend Evidence Obtained from Traffic Stop Violated Their Fourth Amendment Rights
The court vacated the order denying petitioners’ motion for suppression of evidence that was obtained as a result of a traffic stop by a Pennsylvania state trooper, holding that the petitioners had identified a possible egregious Fourth Amendment violation. (Yoc-Us v. Att’y Gen., 7/31/19)
CA6 Says It Lacks Jurisdiction to Review Untimely Challenge to Underlying Removal Order
The court held that it lacked jurisdiction to review the petitioner’s assertion that the immigration court did not have jurisdiction to issue the underlying removal order, finding that this challenge was time-barred pursuant to INA §242(b)(1). (Moreno-Martinez v. Barr, 7/31/19)
CA8 Finds IJ’s Adverse Credibility Finding Was Not Supported by Cogent Reasons
The court granted the petition for review and remanded for a new credibility determination, holding that the IJ’s adverse credibility finding with regard to the Chinese Christian petitioner was not supported by cogent reasons for disbelief. (Tian v. Barr, 7/30/19)
Immigration Court Finds Respondent’s Conviction for Malicious Destruction of Property Is Not a “Crime of Violence”
Unpublished BIA decision holds that respondent’s conviction for malicious destruction of property under Md. Code Ann., Crim. Law §6-301 is not a “crime of violence,” denied DHS’s motion to pretermit, and granted the respondent’s application for cancellation of removal. Courtesy of Eric Singer.
Sign-On Letter to DHS, USCIS, and DOD Requesting the Continuation of Military Parole in Place
On 7/30/19, 27 organizations joined AILA to send a letter to Acting DHS Secretary McAleenan, Acting USCIS Director Cuccinelli, and DOD Secretary Esper requesting that the administration continue parole in place (PIP) for military families.
Attorney General Overrules Portion of Matter of L-E-A- Relating to Particular Social Group
The Attorney General found that the BIA improperly recognized the respondent’s father’s immediate family as a particular social group. Decision notes that all cases inconsistent with this opinion are abrogated. Matter of L-E-A-, 27 I&N Dec. 581 (A.G. 2019)
AILA: AG’s Decision Ignores Precedent and Is the Latest Attempt to Restrict Asylum
AG Barr issued a decision in Matter of L-E-A- impacting how family membership could be considered in asylum proceedings. AILA Second VP Jeremy McKinney noted: “Courts, like the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals, have voluminous case law directly contradicting the Attorney General’s decision.”