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
Five Incarcerated Refugee Families Finally Released After Being Held for Months on End
The CARA Family Detention Pro Bono Project responded to Friday’s release of five families who had been subjected to many months of incarceration despite repeated efforts to advocate for their release pending the adjudication of their claims for protection in the United States.
Representative Bennie Thompson Expresses Concern on ICE Actions in Family Detention Centers
Letter from Ranking Member of the House Homeland Security Committee Bennie Thompson (D-MS) to ICE Director Sarah Saldaña expressing concern regarding recent ICE actions restricting access to counsel and providing misinformation to detainees at the family detention centers in Dilley and Karnes, TX.
AILA Quicktake #137: Access to Counsel in Dilley
AILA member and CARA volunteer Kim Hunter shares the latest access to counsel issues in Dilley and how it affects detainees' cases in this Quicktake.
BIA Says Inter-Proceeding Similarities Can Be Considered in Credibility Determinations
The BIA held that, in making an adverse credibility determination, an IJ can consider significant similarities between statements submitted by applicants in different proceedings, if certain procedural steps are undertaken to preserve fairness. Matter of R-K-K-, 26 I&N Dec. 658 (BIA 2015)
AILA Files Amicus Brief with Fifth Circuit on the Modified Categorical Approach
AILA filed an amicus brief with the Fifth Circuit in Mata v. Lynch, arguing courts should use the modified categorical approach under Descamps only when the statute of conviction contains alternative elements that must be found unanimously by a jury before a conviction.
BIA Rescinds In Absentia Order Because Hearing Notice Did Not Contain Complete Address
Unpublished BIA decision rescinds in absentia order because address on hearing notice did not include lot number and respondent acted with diligence after learning of removal order. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Reyes-Rojo, 9/8/15)
DHS Concedes Florida Statute Is Not An Aggravated Felony Fraud Offense
Unpublished BIA decision notes DHS withdrawal of appeal after conceding that exploitation of an elderly person in excess of $100,000 under Fla. Stat. 825.103 is not an aggravated felony fraud offense. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Cortina, 9/4/15)
Compilation of Family Detention Case Examples
Compilation of case examples of mothers and children from the Artesia family detention center who have been granted asylum.
BIA Holds Georgia Theft Statute Not an Aggravated Felony
Unpublished BIA decision holds that Ga. Code 16-8-2 is not an aggravated felony theft offense because it encompasses theft by conversion, fraud, or deception, and because the statute is overbroad rather than divisible. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Ajaelu, 9/3/15)
CA9 Reverses BIA’s Denial of CAT Deferral for Transgender Woman from Mexico
The court granted in part the petition for review, holding that the BIA erred in denying CAT relief for the petitioner, a Mexican transgender woman, because it failed to recognize the difference between gender identity and sexual orientation. (Avendano-Hernandez v. Lynch, 9/3/15)
EOIR Announces New General Counsel
EOIR announced the appointment of Jean King to serve as the agency’s next general counsel, effective September 6, 2015. In addition to serving as the acting general counsel for eight months earlier this year, she served as the deputy general counsel since December 2012.
Immigration Law Advisor, July-August 2015 (Vol. 9, No. 7)
Immigration Law Advisor with an article on Nijhawan v. Holder, as well as a chart with post-Nijhawan circuit court holdings, summaries of circuit court decisions from June and July 2015, summaries of recent BIA precedent decisions, and a regulatory update.
BIA Rescinds In Absentia Order Due to Confusion Regarding Date of Hearing
Unpublished BIA decision rescinds in absentia order upon finding respondent’s confusion regarding date of hearing constituted exceptional circumstances in light of eligibility to adjust and attendance at all prior hearings. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Bonilla-Molina, 9/2/15)
DOJ OIL September 2015 Litigation Bulletin
The DOJ OIL Immigration Litigation Bulletin for September 2015, with articles on Avendano-Hernandez v. Lynch, Morales-Santana v. Lynch, and TPS for Yemeni nationals, as well as summaries of circuit court decisions for September 2015.
CA9 Finds Voluntary Manslaughter Is Not Categorically a Crime of Violence
The court reversed the BIA's denial of petitioner's withholding and CAT applications, holding that petitioner's California conviction and 11-year sentence for voluntary manslaughter was not a categorical “crime of violence” or a “particularly serious crime.” (Quijada-Aguilar v. Lynch, 9/1/15)
CA10 Says State Conviction for Criminal Impersonation Is Categorically a CIMT
The court upheld the BIA’s denial of petitioner's motion to reopen, finding that petitioner's CO conviction for criminal impersonation was categorically a crime involving moral turpitude, thus rendering petitioner ineligible for cancellation of removal. (Veloz-Luvevano v. Lynch, 8/31/15)
BIA Grants Motion to Reconsider Denial of Asylum Application
Unpublished BIA decision reconsiders prior denial of asylum application upon finding IJ erred in finding respondents’ witnesses not credible and in requiring respondent to provide corroborating evidence from former supervisor in China. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of S-L-, 8/31/15)
TRAC Report Finds ICE Detainer Use Declining, But Not Targeting Convicted Criminals
A TRAC report found that ICE detainer use has declined, with the latest data showing that ICE issued 7,993 detainers in April 2015, which was 30% fewer than in October 2014. The data also showed that only 32% of individuals on whom detainers were placed in April 2015 had been convicted of a crime.
CA8 Says It Lacks Jurisdiction to Review BIA's Sua Sponte Denial of Motion to Reopen
The court held that it lacked jurisdiction to review the denial of petitioner's motion to reopen, because the motion requested that the BIA reopen the proceedings sua sponte, and the court may only review a denial of a statutory motion to reopen. (Shoyombo v. Lynch, 8/28/15)
CA9 Says Matter of Briones Does Not Apply Retroactively Where Applicant Relied on Acosta
The court reversed BIA's denial of petitioner's adjustment application, finding that petitioner reasonably relied on the law in effect at the time he applied, and that Matter of Briones should not be applied retroactively to bar his application. (Acosta-Olivarria v. Lynch, 8/26/15)
CA9 Upholds CAT Denial of Petitioner with Non-Gang Tattoos
The court upheld the BIAs’ denial of petitioner's CAT application, holding that the evidence did not compel the conclusion that petitioner established it was more likely than not that he would be tortured in El Salvador due to his decorative, non-gang tattoos. (Andrade v. Lynch, 8/27/15)
BIA Reopens Proceedings Sua Sponte Because Attorney Who Received Hearing Notice Did Not Enter Appearance
Unpublished BIA decision reopens proceedings sua sponte following in absentia order because record did not contain an entry of appearance for the attorney who received the hearing notice. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Ayala-Guevara, 8/27/15)
BIA Request for Amicus Briefs on Jeune v. Att'y Gen.
The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) invites interested members of the public to file amicus curiae briefs on two specified issues relating to the Third Circuit's decision in Jeune v. Att'y Gen. Briefs are due by 9/25/15.
AILA Amicus Brief Filed in SCOTUS Case Luna-Torres v. Lynch
AILA amicus filed with the Supreme Court arguing that a crime is not an “offense described in” a federal criminal statute unless it meets all of the elements of that statute, including the interstate commerce requirement.
BIA Remands for Consideration of Administrative Closure Motion
Unpublished BIA decision finds that IJ's failure to consider a Motion to Administratively Close proceedings was error, and that IJ’s decision to allow DHS's sizable exhibit to be presented at the merits hearing without giving counsel sufficient time to review was unfair. Courtesy of Carlos Spector.