Attorney General Bonta Leads Coalition in Opposing Inhumane No-Bond Immigration Detention Coverage | State of California – Department of Justice

OAKLAND – California Attorney General Rob Bonta, main a multistate coalition together with New York Attorney General Letitia James, filed an amicus temporary opposing a brand new federal coverage that mandates indefinite detention of many undocumented immigrants with out the chance for a bond listening to. In a quick filed in Bautista v. Noem, the coalition challenges the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) unprecedented reinterpretation of immigration regulation, arguing it violates due course of and federal statutes, and inflicts widespread hurt on households, communities, and state economies. 

“The Trump Administration has created a mass deportation apparatus built around the abduction and incarceration of immigrants,” mentioned Attorney General Bonta. “It’s inhumane — and illegal. We’re talking about individuals who have lived and worked in the U.S. for years, who have had families here and become vital parts of their communities. They deserve to be treated with respect, and they have the right to the due process afforded to them by the Constitution.”  

For many years, immigrants residing within the U.S. who have been positioned in removing proceedings had the best to request a bond listening to — an opportunity to argue for his or her launch whereas their immigration case was pending. DHS’s new coverage eliminates that proper for individuals who entered the nation with out inspection, mandating their indefinite detention no matter particular person circumstances. Many of those people have lived within the U.S. for years and now face confinement in typically overcrowded, unsafe, and unsanitary services for months and even years. As DHS expands its enforcement efforts, tens of millions of extra immigrants may very well be subjected to obligatory detention below this coverage. 

More than 9 million U.S. residents, together with over 4 million youngsters, dwell with not less than one undocumented member of the family. Studies present that the detention of a dad or mum considerably will increase the danger of despair, nervousness, and post-traumatic stress dysfunction in youngsters, and deepens financial instability for whole households. Fear of detention already deters immigrant households from searching for well being care, meals help, and even reporting crimes, undermining each public security and public well being. The attorneys basic argue that the obligatory detention coverage solely exacerbates this chilling impact.

Undocumented immigrants additionally represent almost 5 % of the U.S. workforce and play essential roles in industries reminiscent of agriculture and building. In 2023, undocumented-led households paid almost $90 billion in taxes and contributed virtually $300 billion in shopper spending. Attorney General Bonta and the coalition argue that unnecessarily detaining these staff disrupts the labor drive and undermines native and state economies. The attorneys basic additionally argue this coverage will come at a considerable value to taxpayers. In 2024, immigration detention value U.S. taxpayers $3.4 billion – roughly $152 per detainee per day. By distinction, DHS’s personal Alternatives to Detention program prices lower than $4.20 per day and is equally efficient in making certain courtroom appearances. The attorneys basic argue that DHS’s shift away from these cost-effective alternate options wastes taxpayer {dollars} whereas delivering no additional benefit.

The attorneys basic additionally emphasize that indefinite detention severely limits detainees’ potential to entry authorized illustration, significantly when they’re transferred to distant services removed from their households and attorneys. This drastically reduces their possibilities of acquiring authorized reduction, even when they’re eligible to stay within the nation. In addition to being inhumane, denying people the chance for a bond listening to contradicts longstanding authorized precedent and elementary due course of protections. The coalition emphasizes that individualized assessments are commonplace in each civil and felony proceedings, and immigrants ought to not be handled in another way merely due to their authorized standing.

The attorneys basic urge the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California to grant partial abstract judgment for the plaintiffs and strike down DHS’s illegal coverage.

Earlier this 12 months, Attorney General Bonta launched the California Department of Justice’s fourth report on immigration detention services working in California the place noncitizens are detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The report is meant to supply members of the general public and policymakers with essential details about the circumstances that individuals in civil immigration detention in California are subjected to. A duplicate of the report is on the market right here. A duplicate of the chief abstract can be out there in Spanish right here. 

Attorney General Bonta and Attorney General James are joined by the attorneys basic of Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington, and the District of Columbia in submitting the amicus temporary. 

A duplicate of the amicus temporary is on the market right here.