ICE Put a Hold on Someone at East Baton Rouge Parish Prison. Here Is What That Actually Means

The call to our office usually starts the same way. A family scraped together bond money for a relative sitting in East Baton Rouge Parish Prison, and the jail told them there is a hold. An immigration hold. Nobody at the window explained what that means, and the family is now trying to make a decision worth years of someone’s life based on a two sentence answer from a clerk.

Here is what is actually happening.

A detainer is a federal immigration request, but Louisiana law separately requires compliance with qualifying detainers

When someone is booked into a parish jail and immigration authorities identify a possible immigration issue, Immigration and Customs Enforcement can issue an immigration detainer, commonly using Form I-247A. The detainer can ask the jail to notify immigration authorities before the person is released and to maintain custody for up to forty eight hours beyond the time the person would otherwise have been released so DHS can assume custody.

An ICE detainer is not the same thing as a criminal arrest warrant signed by a judge. It also is not, by itself, a final determination that the person is removable or evidence of guilt in the criminal case.

Louisiana law, however, separately requires law enforcement agencies to comply with immigration detainers that meet the requirements established by state law. Louisiana Revised Statutes 33:84 also requires notice to the judge authorized to determine bail and requires the detainer to be recorded in the detainee’s case file.

The detainer does not make the state criminal case disappear. If you post bond on the state charge while an immigration detainer remains in effect, your relative may not walk out of custody. Instead, the person may remain temporarily detained and then be transferred to federal immigration custody.

That is not a reason to never post bond. It is a reason to make the decision with a lawyer who understands both systems. The right strategy depends on facts specific to that person, including immigration history, prior removal proceedings, possible immigration relief, the legal authority under which DHS may detain the person, and the criminal charge.

Where they go from here

Louisiana has multiple facilities used for immigration detention. A person transferred from parish custody may be moved to an immigration detention facility in Louisiana or, depending on federal detention operations and available capacity, to a facility elsewhere.

Families can sometimes lose track of someone during the transfer process.

The ICE Online Detainee Locator System can be used to search for someone in immigration custody. An A-number is particularly helpful. If the A-number contains fewer than nine digits, leading zeros may need to be added when searching. The system can also search using biographical information such as the person’s name, date of birth, and country of birth.

The bond question, and the harder one behind it

Once someone is in ICE custody, one of the first questions is whether an immigration judge has authority to consider release on bond.

Not everyone in immigration detention is eligible for a bond hearing before an immigration judge. Certain categories of people may be subject to mandatory detention under INA 236(c), including some people with specified criminal histories.

But criminal history is not the only issue that can affect bond jurisdiction.

Current BIA precedent also limits immigration judges’ authority to grant bond to certain people detained under INA 235, including people who are present in the United States without having been admitted. People with final or prior removal orders may be detained under different legal provisions as well.

That means bond eligibility has to be evaluated based on the person’s individual immigration history, manner of entry, prior immigration proceedings, criminal history, custody status, and the specific statutory authority DHS is using to detain the person.

When an immigration judge does have authority to consider bond, preparation matters. Relevant evidence may include proof of family relationships, tax records, employment records, medical documentation involving dependents, and evidence of residence and ties to the community.

What to do in the first forty eight hours

Do not post the state bond until someone has looked at both cases together.

Write down the full legal name as it appears on foreign identity documents, the exact date of birth, and the country of birth. Find any immigration paperwork in the house, including old envelopes from the government, and photograph everything, front and back.

Do not sign immigration documents you do not understand, and tell your relative the same. Documents involving removal or voluntary departure can have serious immigration consequences.

Call a lawyer who handles immigration detention work in this state.

Why this firm

We handle immigration detention and federal habeas litigation for detainees held in Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas, and we handle Louisiana criminal defense. When an immigration hold affects a client at East Baton Rouge Parish Prison, one office can evaluate both the immigration and criminal sides of the problem.

Call 225-341-6945. If your family member has already been transferred, have the A-number ready if you can find it.