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
District Court Allows Identities of Immigration Judges to Remain Redacted in FOIA Litigation
A district court granted EOIR’s summary judgment motion on the redaction of judges’ personal identifying information and also on the release of the complaint resolutions. The court ordered the release of any non-responsive information previously withheld. (AILA v. EOIR, 12/24/14)
CA4 Reverses and Remands, Says Virginia Grand Larceny Conviction Is Not an Aggravated Felony
The court held the use of the word “or” did not render the crime divisible, the modified categorical approach did not apply, and under the categorical approach, the conviction under Va. Code Ann. §18.2-95 was not an aggravated felony theft offense. (Omargharib v. Holder, 12/23/14)
BIA Holds Kentucky Fourth Degree Assault is Not a Crime of Violence
Unpublished BIA decision holds fourth degree assault under Ky. Rev. Stat. 508.030(1)(a) is categorically not a crime of violence because a jury would not have to unanimously agree on whether a defendant acted intentionally or recklessly. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Warmels, 12/23/14)
USCIS Idea Community Looking for Feedback on DACA
USCIS requests feedback on the DACA renewal process and the extended DACA validity period through the USCIS Idea Community. Feedback will be accepted from 12/23/14 through 12/29/14.
District Court Holds Petitioner's Detention Is Governed by INA §236(a)
The court granted the petitioner's request for a bond hearing, holding that the reinstated removal order issued against the petitioner was not administratively final, and thus that his detention was governed by INA §236(a), not INA §241. (Guerra v. Shanahan, 12/23/14)
Helping to Free Moms and Kids from Artesia, Part 1
In this first segment of a multi-part series, AILA member and Artesia Pro Bono Project volunteer Lisa Laurel Weinberg shares her client's story of winning asylum while in the Artesia family detention center.
BIA Holds Florida Criminal Mischief Not a CIMT
Unpublished BIA decision holds criminal mischief under Fla. Stat. 806.13(1)(a) is not a CIMT because the statute has been applied to conduct that is not inherently base, vile, or depraved. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Patrana, 12/22/14)
BIA Reverses Discretionary Denial of Adjustment
Unpublished BIA decision reverses discretionary denial of adjustment application upon finding respondent’s positive equities outweighed his conviction for driving while intoxicated and more than $1,200 in student debt. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Misumi, 12/22/14)
CA11 Says Beneficiary of Approved I-140 Has Standing to Challenge I-140 Revocation
The court vacated and remanded, holding that an alien who is the beneficiary of an approved I-140, has applied to adjust, and ported under INA §204(j), has standing to challenge the revocation of an I-140 petition. This amends the 9/22/14 decision. (Kurapati v. USCIS, 12/22/14)
CA7 Says Wisconsin Conviction for Fleeing or Eluding a Police Officer Is a CIMT
The court upheld the BIA’s determination that the petitioner’s conviction for fleeing or eluding a police officer in violation of Wisconsin Statute §346.04(3) categorically constituted a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT). (Cano-Oyarzabal v. Holder, 12/22/14)
DHS Releases End of Year Statistics for FY2014
DHS announcement on release of year end statistics for FY2014, including reports from ICE and CBP, finding that ICE had a total of 315,943 removals or returns, and CBP made 486,651 apprehensions, and both apprehensions and removals of Guatemalan, Honduran, and El Salvadorian nationals increased.
ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Report FY2014
Report summarizing ICE’s FY2014 civil immigration enforcement and removal operations, finding that ICE removed 315,943 individuals in FY2014, down from 368,644 in FY2013, and 85% of ICE’s interior removals and returns were previously convicted of a criminal offense, up from 67% in FY2011.
TRAC Report Finds Removal Orders Rise, But with Wide Variation by Court
TRAC report finding that according to the latest case-by-case records, immigration courts granted 54.8% of removal orders issued during October and November 2014, compared with only 50.7% during FY2014. The rate at which deportation orders were granted varied considerably among individual courts.
USCIS Executive Summary from Teleconference on DACA Renewal Process
USCIS executive summary from the 12/18/14 stakeholder teleconference discussing the DACA renewal process.
Letter to President Obama Opposing Family Detention Facility in Dilley
A 12/18/14 letter from AILA and over 120 other advocacy organizations to President Obama opposing the opening of the new family detention facility in Dilley, Texas.
Supreme Court Order Allows DACA Beneficiaries in Arizona to Obtain Driver’s Licenses (Updated 12/18/14)
The court issued an order denying application for stay requested by Arizona Governor Jan Brewer on Ninth Circuit’s decision blocking Arizona driver’s licenses ban for DACA beneficiaries.
AILA: Administration Turns Its Back on American Values with Mammoth New Family Prison
AILA President Leslie A. Holman expressed outrage over the opening of the Dilley family detention center noting that for families, “Moving from a make-shift prison to one run by the private prison industry brings no more humanity to an inhumane situation.”
BIA Finds IJ Should Have Continued Proceedings After Attorney Withdrawal
Unpublished BIA decision finds the IJ should have given the respondent additional time to secure counsel after his original attorney withdrew at the second master calendar hearing. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Baca-Chavez, 12/16/14)
ACLU Complaint Challenging Obama Administration for Detaining Asylum Seekers as Intimidation Tactic
Nationwide class-action lawsuit filed by the ACLU seeking injunctive and declaratory relief, challenging the Obama Administration’s policy of detaining asylum-seeking mothers and children to intimidate others from coming to the U.S. (R.I.L.R. v. Johnson, 12/16/14)
District Court Says Parts of President Obama’s Immigration Actions Are Unconstitutional
The district court, in considering how to sentence a defendant in a criminal case, held that the President’s executive action on immigration is unconstitutional because it violates the separation of powers and the Take Care Clause in the U.S. Constitution. (U.S. v. Juarez-Escobar, 12/16/14)
CA9 Says BIA Decision Denying Some Claims and Remanding Others Is Not Final
The court held when the BIA issues a decision that denies some claims, but remands any other claims, the BIA decision is not a final order of removal with regard to any of the claims, and it does not trigger the 30-day window to file a petition for review. (Abdisalan v. Holder, 12/15/14)
BIA Reverses Fraud Finding Based on Signature on Adjustment Application
Unpublished BIA decision reverses finding that respondent made material misrepresentation by falsely claiming to have signed Form I-485 because the identity of the signatory was not relevant to his eligibility for relief. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Luwaga, 12/12/14)
BIA Finds Georgia Theft Not an Aggravated Felony
Unpublished BIA decision holds that theft under Ga. Code 16-8-2 is not an aggravated felony theft offense because it does not require a taking without the victim’s consent, and that the statute is not divisible. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Vassell, 12/12/14)
Letter to Director Rodriguez on DACA Renewal Processing Times
A 12/12/14 letter from AILA to USCIS Director León Rodríguez, expressing concern over serious delays in processing renewal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) applications, and asking USCIS to automatically extend work authorization to DACA renewal applicants.
BIA Says Drug Trafficking Conviction Not Categorically an Aggravated Felony
Unpublished BIA decision grants the respondent's motion to reopen and remands for the IJ to reassess whether the respondent's California conviction for the transportation of cocaine was an aggravated felony under the modified categorical approach. Courtesy of Russell Abrutyn.