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
CA2 on “Continuous Physical Presence” and Cancellation of Removal
The court found that for purposes of cancellation of removal eligibility, petitioner’s arrest and conviction for illegal entry interrupted the period of “continuous physical presence.” (Ascencio-Rodriguez v. Holder, 2/17/10)
BIA Establishes Temporary “Grace Period” for Weather-related Filing Delays
BIA affords temporary “grace period” for weather-related delays for filings due between 2/5/10 and 2/18/10.
First Removals Executed under New Hampshire Rapid REPAT Program
The New Hampshire Department of Corrections announced the transfer of the first eligible parolees to the jurisdiction of ICE to be deported through a new agreement between NH and ICE under the Rapid REPAT (Removal of Eligible Parolees Accepted for Transfer) program.
DHS Supplemental Brief in Matter of Garcia-Arreola
DHS Principal Deputy General Counsel David Martin filed a brief in Matter of Garcia-Arreola suggesting that the Matter of Saysana ought to be clarified. AILA also filed an amicus brief in the same matter.
CA8 Finds Corroborated Confession Sufficient Evidence to Support Illegal Re-entry Conviction
CA8 affirmed defendant's conviction for illegal re-entry, finding defendant's corroborated confession was sufficient evidence to support the jury verdict. (United States v. Fajardo-Fajardo, 2/12/10)
TRAC Report on the $24 Billion Spent by ICE
TRAC released a report which analyzes ICE records about detainees from FY2005 through the first quarter of FY2010. The report found that funding increases by Congress contributed to a 64% increase in the number of individuals ICE detained from FY2005 to FY2009.
CA7 on the Jurisdictional Exception in 8 U.S.C. § 1503(a) Action for Declaration of Nationality
CA7 reversed dismissal for lack of subject matter jurisdiction, finding jurisdictional exception in 8 U.S.C. § 1503(a) was directed at individuals whose claims of nationality were being or had been litigated fully in removal proceedings. (Ortega v. Holder, 2/11/10)
CA7 Finds Motion to Reopen Time-Barred Where No Basis Offer to Excuse Delay
CA7 affirmed denial of motion to reopen by departed alien, finding that petitioner’s motion was unquestionably time-barred where petitioner offered no basis to excuse a six-plus year delay in moving to reopen. (Munoz de Real v. Holder, 2/11/10)
AILA Signs on to Carachuri Amicus Brief
AILA Amicus Committee alert that AILA signed on to an amicus brief submitted in Carachuri-Rosendo v. Holder, along with 18 other community groups, civil rights organizations, immigration justice organizations, and legal service providers.
EOIR Emergency Stay Telephone System Operating Despite Weather Related Closures
AILA confirms that despite the severe weather in the Washington, DC, area, the BIA continues to staff the Emergency Stay telephone system.
ABA Report Addresses Immigration Removal Process
A report prepared by Arnold & Porter LLP and released by the ABA in February 2010 entitled, “Reforming the Immigration System: Proposals to Promote Independence, Fairness, Efficiency, and Professionalism in the Adjudication of Removal Cases.”
CA6 Grants Withholding under INA and Denies CAT Claim in Police Abuse Case
CA6 granted withholding of removal under INA and denied CAT claim, holding that evidence compels finding that Algerian police abused petitioner for suspected political affiliation and that the abuse constituted persecution. (Haider v. Holder (2/10/10).
CA9 Applies Categorical Approach and Holds Indecent Exposure Not a Crime of Moral Turpitude
CA9 applied the categorical approach and held that indecent exposure under California law is not categorically a crime of moral turpitude. (Nunez v. Holder, 2/10/10)
Parlak and the Persecutor Bar
AILA Amicus Committee alert on Parlak v. Holder.
Third Circuit – Social Group Analysis
AILA Amicus Committee alert on Valdaviezo-Galdamez v. Holder.
Kawashima III
AILA Amicus Committee alert on Kawashima III, where the Court applied a circumstance-specific approach without remanding it to the Board for consideration.
CA9 Finds Failure to Consider Country Conditions Constitutes Reversible Error in CAT Case
CA9 granted petition as to CAT relief application and remanded finding failure to consider evidence of country conditions constitutes reversible error and IJ and BIA erred by construing “government acquiescence” too narrowly. (Aguilar-Ramos v. Holder, 2/4/10)
Tenth Circuit Holds K-2 Visa Holders Do Not “Age-Out” for Purposes of Adjustment of Status.
AILA Amicus Committee alert on Colmenares Carpio v. Holder, in which the tenth circuit court held that K-2 visa holders do not “age-out” for purposes of adjusting.
Bayo: A Constitutional Victory
AILA Amicus Committee alert on Bayo v. Napolitano, where the Court found that there must be some process to assure that Visa Waiver Program waivers are knowing and voluntary, although it speculated that the newly implemented waiver process may resolve the issue.
Immigration Law Advisor, January 2010 (Vol. 4, No. 1)
Immigration Law Advisor, a legal publication from EOIR, with an article on waiver relief for refugees who engaged in criminal activity, federal court activity for December 2009, an article on the motions to reopen and IIRIRA, recent BIA precedent decisions, and a regulatory update.
BIA on “Changed Circumstances” Related to Asylum Application Filing Delays
The BIA held that the particular circumstances related to delays in filing an asylum application must be evaluated to determine whether the application was filed “within a reasonable period given those ‘changed circumstances.’” Matter of T-M-H- & S-W-C-, 25 I&N Dec. 193 (BIA 2010)
BIA on Family Violence Battery Conviction
In an unpublished decision, the BIA remanded, finding respondent's family violence battery conviction is not aggravated felony crime of violence because term of imprisonment of at least one year was not imposed. Courtesy of Mark Newman.
CA8 Finds Unlawful Use of SSN Constitutes Crime Involving Moral Turpitude
CA8 denied petition, finding that conviction for unlawfully using social security number under 42 U.S.C. § 408(a)(7)(A) constituted crime involving moral turpitude.(Lateef v. Dep’t of Homeland Security, 1/29/10)
USCIS Fraud Referral Sheet
USCIS Fraud Referral Sheet which was submitted into evidence by ICE during removal proceedings.
CA7 Finds Repeal of INA §212(c) Not Impermissibly Retroactive
CA7 denied petition, finding petitioner deportable due to his conviction of counterfeiting over two decades ago and holding that repeal of INA § 212(c) is not impermissibly retroactive. (Canto v. Holder, 1/28/10)