POLICY REVIEW

Policy Review

Policy Review: Administrative Amnesty

Introduction

The Administrative Amnesty of the US government is one of the most significant policies of the USA. Detention is one of the less-visible aspects of immigration in the U.S. But current estimates suggest that in 2006, between 26,000 and 27,000 immigrants were held in U.S. detention facilities at any given time. That represents a significant increase over the previous year, and has prompted concern over the conditions in which detainees are kept. Some of those detainees were immigrants caught entering the country illegally, while others were illegal immigrants detained later. Yet another group consisted of those who entered the country legally but later violated U.S. law in some way (Zolberg 2006). Immigration detention is overseen by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE), a division of the Homeland Security Department. ICE operates some detention centers itself, and some of them under contract with private prison companies. Other immigrants are detained by counties across the U.S., usually in jails. Many detention centers are concentrated along the U.S. border with Mexico, site of most of the 1.1 million apprehensions made by the Border Patrol in 2006. This paper discusses “Administrative Amnesty” policy of the USA.

Discussion

Previously, most illegal immigrants who were apprehended were either returned to Mexico (if they were Mexican) or allowed to remain at large in the U.S. until the date of their court hearings. The latter arrangement, prompted by a lack of facilities in which to keep the vast numbers of apprehended immigrants, led to many immigrants simply disappearing before their court dates. In 2006, ICE changed its policy, detaining the immigrants it would have previously released and speeding the process of their deportation. That has led to an increase in the number of detained immigrants and, according to the Homeland Security Department Security, a drop in border apprehensions. But it has also intensified a controversy, already in existence, over the conditions in immigrant detention centers.

Internal investigations by the Homeland Security Department and the Justice Department, as well as other investigations and numerous media accounts, have revealed some disturbing facts about at least some of the facilities. Those include overcrowding, abuse by guards and a lack of timely medical care and access to legal assistance. In addition, many immigrants remain in such facilities for long periods of time, sometimes years, while their cases are decided. And in another recent immigration policy development, authorities have begun to detain immigrant families in special detention centers. (www.fairus.org)

Critics of Administrative Amnesty as it is practiced say that it has gotten out of control. For one thing, they say, immigrant detainees are supposed to have a different legal status than criminal prisoners--they are officially known as "administrative detainees" and are outside of the criminal justice system--but in reality they are treated in much the same way. However, critics say, detained immigrants are also deprived of legal aid in a way that imprisoned criminals are not. Critics also denounce the use of facilities such as jails, and of private ...