Category Archives: News Releases

House Democrats Introduce Immigration Bill

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
October 2, 2013

CONTACT:
Gebe Martinez, [email protected],703-731-9505

Democrats Keep Momentum Going for Immigration Reform

WASHINGTON — Democrats from the House of Representatives today introduced a commonsense immigration reform bill that would create a road to citizenship for millions of aspiring Americans, including young immigrants known as DREAMers.

The bill is anchored by two bipartisan proposals: the measure approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee earlier this year that would overhaul the immigration system and include a path to citizenship for people who currently are undocumented, and a border security bill cosponsored by Republicans and Democrats and passed unanimously by the House Homeland Security Committee. Below is a statement from Marielena Hincapié, executive director of the National Immigration Law Center and the NILC Immigrant Justice Fund:

“In the wake of the federal government shutdown, it is refreshing to see this Democratic bill that’s based on measures that enjoy strong bipartisan support. We applaud the House Democrats for stepping forward to introduce a bill that would create an immigration system that respects family unity and allows those who have dedicated their lives to improving the economy and our communities to fully participate in society.

“However, this bill is far from perfect. We remain concerned — as we’ve been with the Senate’s committee bill and the version that passed on the floor — that the ten- to thirteen-year road to citizenship is too long, is extremely narrow, and will be especially difficult for low-income immigrants. For example, immigrants who qualify for registered provisional immigrant (RPI) status — the first step toward citizenship under the Senate bill — would be allowed to live and work in the U.S. but would be denied access to programs paid for by their tax dollars.

“In a week when we are celebrating an unprecedented level of access to health care coverage created by the new health insurance marketplaces, we believe consideration should be given to allowing the immigrants who benefit from legalization to have access to affordable health care — reducing program costs for everyone — instead of requiring them to wait at least a decade before participating in Obamacare.

“This adjustment in the legislative proposals would make economic and moral sense, and preserve the principle that fundamental governmental assistance programs — student aid, health care, and nutrition assistance — should allow all Americans, regardless of socioeconomic or immigration status, to reach the first rung of the ladder of opportunity.

“This bill is a reminder that, in addition to the economic issues facing our nation, immigration reform is also a top priority for the country. At a time when Congress’s approval ratings are at an all-time low, this bill provides an opportunity for both parties to show the American people that they can, in fact, legislate. We call on Republicans to come to the table and support this bill or proffer a counteroffer that will benefit our communities and our country. The energy, urgency, and political will are here. Americans — of all backgrounds — should not have to wait any longer for reforms that would make our immigration system conform to our values. The time is now.”

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Law Enforcement Says “No” to SAFE Act

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 1, 2013

CONTACT
Gebe Martinez, [email protected], 703-731-9505

Law Enforcement Groups and Top Officers Tell Congress “No” to SAFE Act

WASHINGTON, DC — In a letter they sent to Congress today, law enforcement officials from across the country told legislators to reject the SAFE Act because it would undermine the core mission of local police to maintain community safety and would waste limited law enforcement resources.

“The SAFE Act would radically alter the nature of federal immigration enforcement by vesting enforcement decisions in the hands of state and local law enforcement officials where it does not belong. Immigration is a solely federal policy and it demands a national solution,” the letter stated.

The letter to congressional leaders was signed by the Major Cities Chiefs Police Association (MCCA), the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives (NOBLE), the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF), and law enforcement officials from Arizona, California, Illinois, Iowa, Florida, Maryland, Massachusetts, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Utah, Washington, and Wisconsin.

During a press teleconference call, law enforcement community leaders emphasized that immigration law and its enforcement are federal matters that should not be carried out by state and local police agencies. On the call were Chief Richard S. Biehl, Dayton, OH, Police Department; Chief Chris Burbank, Salt Lake City, UT, Police Department; Chief Jeffrey W. Halstead, Ft. Worth, TX, Police Department; and District Attorney George Gascón, City and County of San Francisco, CA, and former police chief in Mesa, AZ, and San Francisco. The press conference was moderated by National Immigration Law Center (NILC) Executive Director Marielena Hincapié.

“The SAFE Act puts local law enforcement squarely in the middle of immigration enforcement, driving a wedge between our police officers throughout the nation and the communities they serve. Our interest should always be criminal behavior, not status or civil enforcement practices,” Burbank said. He also warned that the SAFE Act would lead to bias because anyone who “acts or speaks differently is going to be asked (about immigration status) and that should not be the purpose of local law enforcement.”

Gascón noted the SAFE Act also would lead to an uneven enforcement of immigration policies and increase the risk of civil liability for local police departments.

“The SAFE Act decentralizes control of our immigration laws and cedes decision-making authority to local jurisdictions. This will result in a patchwork of different regulations that will invariably lead to the unequal application of immigration laws and due process protections,” Gascón said. ”Additionally, this massive increase of criminalization, detention, and deportation of immigrants would divert law enforcement priorities and resources from fighting violent and serious crime.”

Another key concern with the House bill is that it would make an officer’s job more dangerous by cluttering the National Crime Information Center (NCIC) database with unverified, civil immigration–related information.

Halstead, the Ft. Worth police chief, said community leaders oppose the SAFE Act, because it would turn officers away from crime-solving and into immigration enforcers, threatening decades of successful neighborhood programs and trust between officers and residents.

“We rely on citizens input in order to gain information on possible suspects and possible witnesses,” Halstead said. “If we have this type of act come to us and local police start performing federal immigration enforcement, we are going to see those community relationships erode and possibly eliminated.”

Biehl underscored the point that underfunded police agencies do not have the capacity to engage in immigration enforcement, and their current public safety mission would be compromised by the SAFE Act.

“There is not the time, resources, or expertise for law enforcement to engage in immigration enforcement,” Biehl said. “It would give us an impossible mission and possibly cause us to compromise our public safety mission.”

“When people, regardless of immigration or socioeconomic status, feel enough trust in local law enforcement to come forward as victims of or witnesses to crime, our communities are a whole lot safer,” said Hincapié. “Members of Congress should listen to those charged with maintaining public safety and relegate this ill-conceived bill to the ideological waste bin. Failing to do so could threaten everyone’s safety.”

RESOURCES:

Audio recording of news conference.

Letter to Congress from law enforcement community.

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Arizona Governor Extends Discriminatory Ban

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 17, 2013

CONTACT
Adela de la Torre, 213-400-7822, [email protected]

Arizona Governor Extends Discriminatory Driver’s License Ban Against DREAMers to Other Immigrants, Including Certain Domestic Violence Survivors

PHOENIX — A coalition of immigrant and civil rights organizations today criticized a new Arizona Motor Vehicle Division policy ending the practice of issuing drivers’ licenses to certain immigrants who receive federal authorization to live and work in the United States.

“In her zealousness, Governor Brewer has made a policy change that isn’t just anti-immigrant, it’s also anti-woman,” said Karen Tumlin, managing attorney of the National Immigration Law Center. “Now, survivors of domestic violence who are in the process of adjusting their status will be unable to obtain the licenses they need. This sort of policy change only demonstrates that Arizona’s politicians care more about scoring political points than about ensuring the safety of their residents.”

The state announced today that it will end its well-established practice of issuing licenses to all immigrants granted “deferred action” by the federal government, which allows them to remain in the country for a certain period without the threat of deportation, and makes them eligible for work permits and Social Security Numbers. Over the past eight years, the state of Arizona has issued licenses and ID cards nearly 40,000 times to noncitizens with work permits, according to news reports. In August of 2012, the Governor issued an order specifically denying licenses to young immigrants known as DREAMers , who are granted permission to live and work here under one federal deferred action program, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA). Now, she is extending the policy to include other immigrants granted deferred action status.

“Governor Brewer can try to put lipstick on this pig, but it’s still a pig,” said Jenny Chang Newell, staff attorney with the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project. “Arizona’s policy of denying licenses to DREAMers is still unconstitutional, even if the state has decided to apply it to yet more immigrants who have federal permission to live and work here. Rather than excluding more hard-working immigrants, Arizona should join the rest of the country in finding long-term solutions that will help them achieve the American dream.”

The policy change comes on the heels of a federal district court decision in May in a lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), the National Immigration Law Center, the Mexican American Legal and Educational Fund (MALDEF), and the ACLU of Arizona. The decision found that Governor Brewer’s August 2012 order denying DREAMers licenses was discriminatory. Among those who will now be denied licenses are immigrants who have been permitted by the federal government to remain in the country for humanitarian reasons, including certain survivors of domestic violence and victims of human trafficking and sexual exploitation.

“This is a vindictive policy change that is motivated by politics, and Brewer’s desire to get out from under a lawsuit,” said Alessandra Soler, executive director of the ACLU of Arizona. “It only reflects her continuing animus toward DREAMers and her irrational desire to punish even more lawfully present immigrants, including abused women and children.”

Although in its May decision, the court declined to enjoin the policy affecting DREAMers, it concluded that the policy unfairly singled out these young immigrants, while allowing other similar groups of immigrants to obtain licenses, including all other immigrants granted deferred action and a work permit. Rather than ending the practice of excluding the young immigrants, Brewer decided to extend the ban to other immigrants who’ve been granted driver’s licenses for years.

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Policies Advance in States

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 4, 2013

CONTACT
Gebe Martinez, 703-731-9505, [email protected]

Inclusive Immigration Policies Advance Dramatically in the States

LOS ANGELES — While Congress debates whether to vote on immigration reform this year, state legislatures have enacted laws that expand immigrants’ access to driver’s licenses, education, and workers’ rights and that promote community policing policies, according to a new analysis by the National Immigration Law Center (NILC).

In a striking reversal from state legislative sessions of the previous few years, when several states enacted anti-immigrant laws modeled on Arizona’s SB 1070, most of which have been successfully challenged in court, only one state, Georgia, enacted a restrictive measure in 2013. That law bars the use of certain documents to establish identity.

“Rather than promoting a larger role for states in immigration enforcement, proposals in several states sought to build trust between law enforcement and immigrant communities,” the report states.

“Congress should heed the lessons learned in the states. States have learned that scapegoating immigrants can harm all of a state’s residents and, on the other hand, that investing in immigrant students, workers, and families yields economic and social benefits for the community as a whole,” said Marielena Hincapié, NILC’s executive director.

In Congress, the House Judiciary Committee has approved the Strengthen and Fortify Enforcement (SAFE) Act (H.R. 2278) and sent it to the House floor. The SAFE Act’s provisions focus one-dimensionally on immigration enforcement in ways that would actually promote racial profiling and unconstitutional detentions without fixing the broken immigration system’s myriad problems. This House enforcement-only bill would authorize states and localities to create and enforce their own penalties for immigration violations. The bill directly contradicts the spirit and substance of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2012 decision in Arizona v. United States, which affirms the longstanding exclusive authority of the federal government to regulate our nation’s immigration laws rather than having a patchwork system of state immigration enforcement laws.

Enactment of a law such as the SAFE Act would be a step backwards for the country and would be in stark contrast to the more inclusive direction states have taken this year.

Among the inclusive immigration laws and policies adopted by states this year:

• Seven states and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico will provide access to driver’s licenses regardless of immigration status.
• Five states expanded access to higher education for immigrant students.
• One state enacted a domestic workers’ bill of rights.
• Two states and several localities enacted laws or policies aimed at building trust between local law enforcement and immigrant communities.

The NILC report, whose title is “Inclusive Policies Advance Dramatically in the States: Immigrants’ Access to Driver’s Licenses, Higher Education, Workers’ Rights, and Community Policing,” attributes the shift in state polices to increased civic engagement and organizing by immigrant communities. According to the report, “In places where earlier waves of anti-immigrant activism produced restrictive policies, residents increasingly find that the policies are unworkable legally, practically, and politically, which is motivating them to explore more inclusive alternatives.”

The report can be downloaded from www.nilc.org/inclusive-policies-advance-2013/.

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MLK’s Speech Inspires Immigrants Working for Justice

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 28, 2013

CONTACT
Gebe Martinez, 703-731-9505, [email protected]

Dr. Martin Luther King’s “I Have A Dream” Speech Inspires Today’s DREAMers and All Immigrants Working for Justice

WASHINGTON — On the 50th anniversary of the historic 1963 March on Washington and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s stirring “I Have A Dream” speech, the National Immigration Law Center observes this day with a rededication to our continuing fight for equality and justice. The following is a statement by Marielena Hincapié, executive director of the National Immigration Law Center:

“A half-century ago, when civil rights leaders organized the March on Washington as a call for “jobs and freedom,” Dr. King stood in the shadow of the Lincoln Memorial and spoke of his dream, making an indelible mark on the consciousness of our nation. His speech was inspired by his belief in racial and economic equality as well as in the promise of the Declaration of Independence—that all of God’s children would one day be treated equally and not be denied their unalienable right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

“To the hundreds of thousands gathered 50 years ago today, Dr. King said 1963 was not the end but the beginning of the fight for democracy and the pursuit of his dream that everyone be judged ‘not … by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.’

“We share his dream that all people—regardless of their race, gender, or immigration or economic status—be treated equally, fairly, and humanely. In our advocacy on behalf of low-income immigrants and their families, we strive to ensure that all people have equal access to justice, education, government resources and economic opportunities, and are able to achieve their full potential as human beings.

“As many—especially poor people of color— in this country know all too well, Dr. King’s dream and vision of a more just and equal America is still being realized. Income inequality is at historic levels, with many living in extreme poverty and growing numbers of children going to bed hungry. Workers cannot make a living and support families on the minimum wage, and many are still exploited and retaliated against for demanding dignity and justice on the job. Racial profiling by law enforcement, especially of young men of color, continues. Immigrants are unfairly denied access to affordable health care and other programs supported by the taxes they pay.

“But we still dream for a better America.

“Immigrants come to this country because they believe in the American Dream. Those who were brought here as children without documents call themselves ‘DREAMers’ as they pray for the chance to become citizens. They and their parents—and all immigrants—believe in a just and fair democracy and have not given up the hope of living, working, and fulfilling their dreams as American citizens.

“For Dr. King and others who bravely fought for civil rights a half-century ago, we are mindful that the work for racial and economic justice continues. And we will continue to work, inspired by Dr. King’s vision and our shared dreams for an even greater American future enriched by the contributions of immigrants.”

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E-Verify Error Rate Rises for Immigrant Workers

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August. 27, 2013

CONTACT
Gebe Martinez, 703-731-9505, [email protected]

National Immigration Law Center Analysis of U.S.-Commissioned Report Underscores Need for Worker Protections in E-Verify

E-Verify Error Rate Rises for Immigrant Workers

WASHINGTON — If implemented without basic worker protections, a mandate that would require all employers in the U.S. to use an electronic employment eligibility verification system such as E-Verify will exacerbate workplace discrimination, according to a new report by the National Immigration Law Center.

NILC analysts who examined data from a recently released Westat report on E-Verify in the context of previously released studies of the program concluded that, if such a mandate were implemented without strict worker protections, hundreds of thousands of authorized workers might lose their jobs due to government error. (The government-commissioned Westat report, which is dated July 2012, was not released to the public until July 2013.)

Every major current immigration reform proposal includes a mandate that all employers in the U.S. use E-Verify to determine whether their employees are eligible to work in the U.S. The Senate immigration reform proposal includes protections that would, for example, allow workers who have been falsely flagged as unauthorized to work to correct their records. The Senate bill also provides that employers who abuse the system should face specific penalties. A current House proposal, known as the Legal Workforce Act (H.R. 1772), lacks such protections.

“Reams of ink have been spilled on E-Verify, but legislators in Washington have stayed relatively silent about the potential consequences of such a nationally mandated program, especially if it is implemented in haste,” said Josh Stehlik, a NILC’s workers’ rights attorney. “The government’s own data show that hundreds of thousands of workers will have to either contact a government office or risk losing their job, and that employers often fail even to tell their workers that they need to straighten out a possible error in their records.”

Among the key issues highlighted in NILC’s analysis is that many employers who currently use E-Verify either inadvertently or deliberately violate the program’s rules, often with dramatic consequences for workers.

For example, many employers either do not inform workers of initial warnings that they may not be authorized to work or of notices that they need to follow up with the Social Security Administration. Meanwhile, no adequate system is in place for workers to contest E-Verify errors, which inevitably results in too many of them having to face financial and emotional hardship.

Some unscrupulous employers also have been found to “E-Verify” workers who complain of substandard working conditions, as way of intimidating them. Moreover, weak monitoring of employers’ compliance leaves little incentive for them to strictly adhere to the program’s rules.

“Unless E-Verify mandates are paired with strong measures that protect workers’ basic due process rights and allow those wrongly accused of being unauthorized to challenge the errors, the program will simply become another expensive immigration enforcement failure,” said Don Lyster, director of NILC’s DC office. “Legislators in the House of Representatives should take a look at the lessons already learned from E-Verify before rushing to advance legislation that would force this system upon every mom-and-pop business in America.”

NILC’s full report, “Verification Nation: How E-Verify Affects America’s Workers,” is available at www.nilc.org/document.html?id=957. A two-page summary of the report’s findings and recommendations is available at www.nilc.org/document.html?id=959.

Established in 1979, the National Immigration Law Center is the only advocacy organization in the U.S. exclusively dedicated to defending and advancing the rights and opportunities of low-income immigrants and their families. NILC uses a variety of tools, including policy analysis, litigation, education and advocacy, to advance its mission. Over the past three decades, NILC has won landmark legal decisions protecting fundamental rights, thwarted policies that would have devastated the lives of low-income immigrants and their family members, and advanced major policies that reinforce our nation’s values of equality, opportunity, and justice for all.

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New Policy Could Help Immigrant Parents

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August. 23, 2013

CONTACT
Adela de la Torre, 213-674-2832, [email protected]

New Immigration Enforcemenet Directive Could Help Immigrant Parents

Policy Will Not Prevent Family Separation Caused by Record-Breaking Deportations

WASHINGTON — Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) today announced a new directive to the field to provide agents across the country with guidance to safeguard parents’ rights, and to ensure that parents are not unnecessarily separated from their children. The directive also creates a new position charged with overseeing the rights of parents. The new directive was issued after public outcry over newsthat thousands of parents in deportation proceedings have lost – or nearly lost – custody of their children. Below is a statement from Marielena Hincapié, executive director of the National Immigration Law Center:

“Our immigration system has the potential to inflict terrible damage on our most vulnerable citizens: children. This new directive is a necessary step toward protecting family unity, and we welcome ICE’s efforts to ensure that parents are not torn away from their children during – and after – deportation proceedings. No father should be detained hundreds of miles away from his daughter, and mothers should not lose custody simply because ICE has barred them from attending vital family court proceedings or because they have been deported.

“This new directive, however, simply addresses the symptoms of what we all know to be a deeply broken immigration system. Today, thousands of children are growing up with the psychological trauma of having lost a parent to deportation. Thousands more live in fear that they will be without a mother’s hug or a father’s hand to hold, and that number swells each day that commonsense immigration reform is delayed. This new directive should underscore the need for all those in Washington to move quickly to create an immigration system that upholds our most dearly-held family values.”

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Aspiring Citizens Should have Access to Programs

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August. 22, 2013

CONTACT
Adela de la Torre, 213-674-2832, [email protected]

Over 400 Groups Tell Congress to Allow Aspiring Citizens Access to Programs their Tax Dollars Support

WASHINGTON —Immigrants who qualify for the road to citizenship should be able to pay their fair share for affordable health care, have access to nutrition programs, and be treated like other taxpayers by the Internal Revenue Service and the Social Security Administration, Congress was told today in a letter from more than 400 groupsrepresenting immigrant, health care, labor, civil rights, social justice, and faith communities.

Under the Senate bill passed in June, the nation’s 11 million aspiring citizens could apply for a provisional status that would make them wait 10 to 13 years for citizenship. During this time, “registered provisional immigrants” would have permission to live in the country, work, and continue to pay taxes like all Americans, but would be denied access to affordable health care, nutrition assistance, and a decade’s worth of Social Security earnings from taxes they paid.

“During these years, immigrants on a legal path to citizenship will have to pay the same taxes as other working Americans but will be shut out of programs their taxes fund,” stated the letter by over 400 groups in California, Georgia, Iowa, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Carolina, Texas and other states.

“During the August recess, members of Congress are being reminded that our nation and economy would benefit from immigration reform,” said Marielena Hincapié, executive director of the National Immigration Law Center. “But economic justice also demands that immigrants share in the same opportunities afforded to all taxpaying wage-earners, including access to affordable health care and nutrition programs. This is a fair and wise investment in a stronger economy and healthier society.”

Equal access to affordable health care and nutrition assistance and equal treatment of all taxpayers who contribute to Social Security allows aspiring citizens to fully participate and contribute to society.

“By creating the same requirements and opportunities for all taxpaying workers — including those on a path to citizenship — we would be protecting the integrity of our tax code and Social Security system,” said Deborah Weinstein, executive director of the Coalition on Human Needs, which advocates on behalf of children, women, the elderly and people with disabilities. “It is important to remember that more than 4 out of 5 immigrant households include U.S. citizen children.”

Immigrants, including women and children, should not be marginalized in the immigration debate. “The health care needs of women and children are being left behind,” said Jessica González-Rojas, executive director of the National Latina Institute for Reproductive Health. “A 10-15 year wait or more for health care and nutrition assistance can be a lifetime for children and could mean the difference between life and death for a woman with undetected breast or cervical cancer. We urge Congress to advance smart reforms that allow all aspiring citizens to fully contribute to the success of their families and communities.”

Here is the letter.

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DACA Has Proven Successful

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August. 15, 2013

CONTACT
Adela de la Torre, 213-674-2832, [email protected]

One Year Later, DACA Has Proven Successful

Program Underscores Need for Lasting, Permanent Road to Citizenship for DREAMers and Parents

WASHINGTON —One year ago today, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program began accepting applications. The program, which provides relief from deportation as well as work authorization to immigrants who arrived in this country as children and have met certain requirements, has attracted more than 500,000 applicants. Below is a statement from Don Lyster, director of the National Immigration Law Center’s DC office:

“The implementation of DACA has been a model of effectiveness. The program is proof that when advocates, attorneys, immigrants, and government agencies work together, we can make life better for hundreds of thousands of people. Across the country, immigrant youth are achieving their personal and professional dreams thanks to the incredible work done by countless people to educate and advocate for this program.

“DACA is more than a life-changing program for DREAMers, it’s also a game-changer in the political world. This program is the result of months of relentless advocacy by DREAMers and their allies. These immigrant youth showed that they are ready to determine their own destinies, and our civil society is made richer thanks to their contributions.

“However, they—and we—are not done yet. DREAMers’ parents and loved ones continue to be deported at record rates, shattering families and communities in the process. Those who’ve been granted DACA are stuck planning their lives in two-year increments, and their position in this country could disappear under a future administration.

“These 11 million aspiring Americans should have the opportunity to earn their citizenship. When the House of Representatives reconvenes in September, it can and should follow in the Senate’s bipartisan footsteps and give DREAMers, their parents, and their loved ones a vote on citizenship. Until then, we will continue to mobilize, organize, and advocate for laws that allow the half million DACAmented immigrants to become full participants in our society.”

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Workers Win End to Jail Immigration Enforcement

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August. 13, 2013

CONTACT
Adela de la Torre, 213-674-2832, [email protected]

Workers Win End to Immigration Enforcement in Orleans Parish Prison

Amid national immigration debate, new pro-immigrant policy is one of farthest-reaching in the U.S.

NEW ORLEANS — Reversing his previous position, Orleans Parish Sheriff Marlin Gusman has agreed to a policy that locks immigration enforcement out of New Orleans Parish Prison. The policy is one of the farthest-reaching of its kind in the country and comes as some lawmakers push to include broader criminalization of immigrants and ever-harsher enforcement in national immigration reform.

The new policy is part of a settlement agreement in Cacho v. Gusman(2:11-CV-225, E.D. Louisiana), a lawsuit filed by two immigrant worker members of the New Orleans Workers’ Center for Racial Justice(NOWCRJ). The two men were unconstitutionally held on U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) hold requests in Orleans Parish Prison for more than 160 and 90 days, respectively. ICE hold requests are supposed to be limited to 48 hours, according the federal agency’s rules.

NOWCRJ, the National Immigration Law Center (NILC), and the law firm Orrick represented the plaintiffs in the litigation. The plaintiffs are members of NOWCRJ’s Congress of Day Laborers.

Over the past three years, the sheriff has faced pressure from prayer vigils, a unanimous New Orleans City Council resolution calling on him to stop submitting to immigration detainers, and a U.S. Department of Justice finding that raised serious constitutional concerns with his previous policy.

According to the new policy, Orleans Parish Prison will decline all ICE hold requests except for specific serious crimes. For individuals with those charges, the sheriff will defer to the recommendation of the criminal court.

The Orleans Parish Sheriff will not investigate an individual’s immigration status.

ICE may not conduct investigations into civil violations of immigration law in the jail. If ICE wants to conduct a criminal investigation in the jail, ICE must provide reasonable notice and opportunity for the individual’s attorney to be present at any interview.

NILC staff attorney Melissa Keaney said, “Orleans Parish Prison has been emblematic of a national problem: When local law enforcement carry out immigration enforcement, severe constitutional violations follow. Lawmakers debating national immigration reform need to reject the broad criminalization found in proposals such as the SAFE Act and instead let immigrant communities take the lead in setting policies that actually make communities safer.”

“Together, the community and the sheriff have put New Orleans on the right side of history,” said Jacinta Gonzalez, lead immigration organizer for NOWCRJ. “The new policy respects the right of immigrant workers to remain in the communities they rebuilt.”

NOWCRJ legal director J.J. Rosenbaum said, “The sheriff’s previous policy led to systematic racial profiling and severe constitutional violations. The new policy can serve as a model both for local communities and policymakers in Washington, DC.”

Plaintiff and NOWCRJ member Antonio Ocampo said, “No one should be torn away from their family and spend more than 90 days in jail without a charge, the way I did. I am proud that because of our fight, no other worker in New Orleans will go through what I did.”

For more information about Cacho v. Gusman, visitwww.nilc.org/orleans.html.

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