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
AILA Press Release: Protecting the Most Vulnerable
AILA urges support for the Unaccompanied Alien Child Protection Act of 2003, and commends Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) for introducing this crucial piece of legislation which addresses many of the problems facing the over 5,000 unaccompanied immigrant children found in the U.S. each year.
CA2 Finds CT Statutory Rape Is an Aggravated Felony
The court held that second-degree sexual assault (statutory rape) in violation of Connecticut General Statutes §53a-71 is an aggravated felony crime of violence. (Chery v. Ashcroft, 10/17/03)
CA9 Shows Inclination to Refuse Retroactive Effect of IIRAIRA Section 321
The Ninth Circuit indicated an inclination to hold that a retroactive effect of IIRAIRA section 321's expansion of the aggravated felony definition would violate due process. (USA v. Ubaldo-Figuerora, 10/17/03)
ABA Calls on BIA to Discard 2002 Procedural Changes
The American Bar Association (ABA), on 10/13/03, called on the BIA to discard procedural changes it adopted in 2002. The announcement follows an ABA review of a recent study on the BIA changes which found that they have had a “serious and sweeping effect on the administration of justice.”
CA9 Holds that a Pre-Sentence Report is Not Within the Record of Conviction For the Purpose of Determining Grounds of Removal
CA9 held that, for a conviction under a state statute criminalizing both conduct that does and does not qualify as an aggravated felony, the record of conviction can be examined, but a Pre-Sentencing report is not part of the record of conviction. (Lara-Chacon v. Ashcroft, 10/10/03)
EOIR Instructions for Going "Off-Record" During Proceedings
OCIJ memo advises IJ’s to limit off-record discussions, instructs to clarify for the record when the recorder is turned off, summarize the off-record discussion when the recorder is turned on, and ask the parties if there is anything to add to the summary. Memo became effective on 10/10/03.
CA3 on Impact of Credibility Finding on Corroboration
The court remanded to the BIA to reconsider its adoption of the IJ's finding on corroboration in light of its reversal of the IJ's adverse credibility finding. (Miah v. Ashcroft, 10/9/03)
CA9 Finds Eligibility for VAWA Suspension for Mental Cruelty Committed in the United States
Though physical cruelty occurred outside the U.S., CA9 found VAWA suspension eligibility where the applicant was subjected to the "contrite" phase of mental cruelty while in the U.S. (Hernandez v. Ashcroft, 10/7/03)
CA7 Allows Re-Start of 30-Day Clock for Review Petition on Reissued Order
CA7 held that, where a decision was reissued because the petitioner did not receive it until after the petition for review period had run, the reissued decision can be treated as a new decision, establishing a new petition for review deadline. (Firmansjah v. Ashcroft, 10/17/03)
USCIS Training Materials on 212(h) Waivers
Training materials used by USCIS with respect to criminal waivers under section 212(h) and Matter of Jean.
CA9 Reverses BIA, Finding that Oral Advisories on Failure to Comply with Voluntary Departure Were Not Sufficiently Specific
CA9 found that the petitioner was not barred from applying for suspension because the oral advisory provided by the IJ did not identify the types of relief for which he would become ineligible if he failed to depart pursuant to the voluntary departure order. (Ordonez v. INS, 10/2/03)
CA9 Rejects Government Argument that Former INA section 236(e) Governs Petitioner's Detention
CA9 ruled that the repealed provision INA section 236(e) cannot govern petitioner’s current detention, and that his detention review was governed, instead, by post-IIRIRA law, Zadvydas, and Ma. (Martinez-Vasquez v. INS, 10/1/03)
USCIS HQ Provides Written Responses to Issues Raised in Liaison (10/1/03)
USCIS' written responses to liaison questions include readjudication of established facts, AC21, zero tolerance, and healthcare worker visa screens.
EOIR's Responses to AILA Liaison Questions (9/25/03)
Liaison issues addressed with EOIR included such topics as conditional asylum grants, EOIR-27 and -29 forms, judicial behavior, case completion policies, appraisals of IJ performance, administrative closure, continuances, custody hearings, and OCIJ assignments.
CA9 Strikes Down Indefinite Detention Where Removal is Not "Reasonably Foreseeable"
CA9 held that the Supreme Court's decisions in Zadvydas and Ma did not differentiate between inadmissible and deportable aliens, nor between pre- and post- IIRIRA orders of exclusion, deportation, or removal. Therefore, post-IIRIRA law applies. (Marquez v. INS, 9/19/03)
CA9 Holds That It Has Equitable Jurisdiction to Stay the Voluntary Departure Period Pending Review
CA9 rejected the assertions that it lacked jurisdiction to stay the voluntary departure period pending review, holding that it should adjudicate motions for a stay of voluntary departure under the same balancing test as motions to stay removal. (El Himri v. Ashcroft, 9/19/03)
CA9 Upholds Somali Class Action and Preliminary Injunction Enjoining Removal to Somalia
The Ninth Circuit found that nationwide class certification was proper and that petitioners had standing. It affirmed the reasoning and holding of the district court prohibiting removal without acceptance by the foreign government. (Ali v. Ashcroft, 9/17/03)
USCIS Issues Guidance on Service Center Issuance of Notice to Appear (Form I-862)
A 9/12/03 memo from William Yates, USCIS Associate Director, providing field guidance on the initial phase of the program for service centers to issue NTAs. Officers are reminded that the 11/17/00 Meissner memo on prosecutorial discretion remains in force.
CA2 Says BIA Erred in Considering Pre-Sentence Report
The court found that the BIA erred in considering the pre-sentence report in determining whether Petitioner's conviction for unlawful imprisonment was an aggravated felony crime of violence. (Dickson v. Ashcroft, 9/9/03)
CA9 Finds IJ Behavior Violated Due Process
The Ninth Circuit found that an IJ's questioning and remarks about petitioner's sexual morality reflected bias that prevented her from being a neutral fact-finder, thus preventing full presentation of a claim for suspension. (Reyez-Melendez v. INS, 9/4/03)
AILA SCOPS Liaison Q&As (9/4/03)
Minutes of the 9/4/03 Service Center Operations liaison teleconference, include the proper payee on filing fee checks, when to file advance parole, a "start date" for an I-539, and NTA issuance by USCIS.
CA1 Refuses to Apply INA §241(a)(5) Retroactively
The court held that reinstatement of removal under INA §241(a)(5) could not be applied retroactively to Petitioner, who applied for relief before IIRIRA’s effective date. (Arevalo v. Ashcroft, 8/29/03)
Service Center Adjudicators May Issue NTAs
AILA has received a reliable report that BCIS plans to have adjudicators at the Service Centers start issuing Notices to Appear, possibly as early as October 1, 2003.
CA10 Finds DWI Involving No Injury to Others Not an Aggravated Felony
The Tenth Circuit distinguished the context in which Tapia Garcia v. INS arose in finding that a driving while intoxicated conviction that involved no injury to others did not constitute a crime of violence. (USA v. Lucia-Lucio, 8/28/03)
CA9 Allows Reopening of In Absentia Order in Absence of Bar Complaint
The Ninth Circuit allowed reopening of an in absentia removal order where the attorney's employee misinformed petitioners of their hearing date. The court did not require a showing under Lozado that petitioners had been prejudiced by counsel's error. (Lo v. Ashcroft, 8/27/03)