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ACLU Welcomes Immigration Detention Medical Treatment Legislation (05/05/2008)
WASHINGTON - The American Civil Liberties Union applauds Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) for introducing H.R. 5950, the Detainee Basic Medical Care Act of 2008. This legislation requires the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to develop procedures to ensure adequate medical care for all detainees held by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The legislation also requires ICE to report detainee deaths to the DHS and Department of Justice Offices of Inspector General.

ACLU Demands ICE End Illegal Deportation of U.S. Citizens (02/13/2008)
Washington, DC – The story of Pedro Guzman, a U.S. citizen born and raised in California, was invoked today throughout a hearing examining Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s illegal deportation of United States citizens. James Brosnahan, of Morrison & Foerster, who is representing Guzman alongside the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, testified about the plight of the 30-year-old cognitively impaired American citizen illegally deported to Mexico after he was arrested on misdemeanor charges and sent to Los Angeles County jail.

ACLU Calls Passage of Deaths in Custody Bill a Step in the Right Direction (01/23/2008)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union today supported a bill passed by the House that compels officials to report deaths of prisoners and immigration detainees in local and state custody. The Deaths in Custody Reporting Act, introduced by Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA), demands accountability and transparency from state and local agencies, where most immigration detainees are held, when people die in custody. The bill does not, however, apply to deaths in federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facilities.

Egyptian Torture Victim Released From Immigration Detention (01/15/2008)
SCRANTON, PA - Egyptian national Sameh Khouzam was released from detention today days after a federal judge ruled that the U.S. government cannot rely on secret and unreviewable “assurances” from the Egyptian government that it will not torture him upon his return. Last Thursday, the judge granted Khouzam’s habeas corpus petition and ordered that he be immediately freed from a Pennsylvania prison, where he has been held since May. Khouzam is represented by the American Civil Liberties Union.

Court Rejects Government’s Attempt to Deport Egyptian to Torture (01/10/2008)
SCRANTON, PA – In the first decision of its kind, a federal judge today ordered the government to stop the deportation of Egyptian national Sameh Khouzam based on a secret and unreliable “assurance” from the Egyptian government that it will not torture him upon his return. The judge called for Khouzam’s immediate release from jail under reasonable conditions of supervision and granted his habeas corpus petition. The American Civil Liberties Union, which filed a lawsuit on Khouzam’s behalf, applauded the judge’s ruling.

Amendment to Legislation Will Require Government Transparency and Accountability Regarding Immigrant Deaths in Custody (11/07/2007)
Washington, DC – An amendment that requires officials to report deaths of detainees in local and state custody was passed today by the House Judiciary Committee. The amendment, offered by Representative Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and attached to H.R. 3971, the Death in Custody Reporting Act of 2007, mandates transparency and accountability by state and local agencies of all immigration detainees who die in their custody. Since most Immigration and Customs Enforcement detainees are held in state and local facilities, most of the deaths of immigrants in detention would have to be reported to the attorney general.

ACLU and Victims of Inadequate Medical Care in Immigration Detention Tell Congress to Prevent More Deaths (10/04/2007)
Washington, DC – The American Civil Liberties Union and victims of inadequate medical treatment in immigration detention facilities testified in Congress today urging more oversight of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), in whose custody at least 65 people have died since 2004. According to the ACLU, inadequate medical care may be a leading cause of death in immigration detention. Activists, experts, victims of deficient medical care in ICE detention and relatives of people who died in ICE custody all testified, sharing harrowing stories and sobering facts.

Landmark Settlement Announced in Federal Lawsuit Challenging Conditions at Immigrant Detention Center in Texas (08/27/2007)
AUSTIN, TX -- The American Civil Liberties Union today announced a landmark settlement with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) that greatly improves conditions for immigrant children and their families inside the T. Don Hutto detention center in Taylor, Texas. Dozens of children were released from the facility with their families as a result of the litigation. The settlement is expected to be approved shortly by Judge Sam Sparks of the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas.

ACLU of Rhode Island Seeks Review of Police Department Medical Policies Following Death of Immigrant (08/09/2007)
WOONSOCKET, RI - In response to the death on Tuesday of Edmar Alves Araujo, a Brazilian national who had epilepsy, while in the custody of immigration officials, the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island today filed an open records request with the Woonsocket Police Department to obtain copies of its policies addressing how the medical needs of individuals in police custody are handled. The ACLU has also called on the Attorney General to conduct an immediate inventory of other municipal police department policies across the state regarding the provision of medication to detainees who may have emergency medical needs.

Se Sostiene Mandato Judicial: Juez Encuentra Extensos Maltratos y Abusos En Los Centros de Detención de Inmigración (07/31/2007)
LOS ÁNGELES - En una evaluación nacional sobre los derechos legales de los inmigrantes en centros de detención, una juez federal halló graves violaciones de los estándares decretados por el propio gobierno.

Judge Finds Widespread Abuses in Immigration Detention (07/31/2007)
LOS ANGELES - In a nationwide review of legal rights for immigrants in federal detention, a federal judge has found serious violations of the government's own standards relating to detention conditions.

ACLU Calls on Immigration Officials to Release Information About Immigrant Detention Deaths (06/27/2007)
WASHINGTON -- The American Civil Liberties Union filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request today to obtain information about the nature of 62 deaths of people in immigration detention since 2004. According to a New York Times article published yesterday, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) reported 62 detainee deaths since 2004, but ICE refused to provide any details about the nature or causes of the deaths. 

ACLU Sues U.S. Immigration Officials and For-Profit Corrections Corporation Over Grossly Deficient Health Care (06/13/2007)
SAN DIEGO -- The American Civil Liberties Union today filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of immigrant detainees at San Diego Correctional Facility (SDCF), charging that inadequate medical and mental health care have caused unnecessary suffering and, in several cases, avoidable death.

ACLU Seeks Release of Gulf War Vet Illegally Detained for Three Years (05/22/2007)
NEW YORK – The American Civil Liberties Union today filed a habeas petition seeking the release of Warren Joseph, a Gulf War veteran and immigrant from Trinidad who is a permanent resident of the United States. Joseph has been illegally locked up for more than three years in immigration custody in a New Jersey prison.

ACLU of Southern California Learns Immigrants Are Forcibly Drugged for Deportation (05/08/2007)
LOS ANGELES - The American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California has learned that two immigrants were forcibly sedated by the United States government. Raymond Soeoth and Amadou Diouf, clients in an ACLU of Southern California lawsuit, revealed that they had both been drugged involuntarily during attempts to deport them.

Civil Rights Groups Sue Immigration Officials for Unlawfully Detaining Six-Year-Old U.S. Citizen (04/26/2007)
SAN FRANCISCO – The American Civil Liberties Union, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights, the ACLU of Northern California, and the law firm of Coblentz, Patch, Duffy & Bass LLP, filed a lawsuit today on behalf of a U.S. citizen child who was unlawfully detained for ten hours by immigration officials.

Court Says ACLU Likely to Prevail on Claims Regarding Immigrant Children Detained at Hutto Facility in Texas (04/10/2007)
AUSTIN, TX - In a ruling issued late Monday, a Texas federal court found that the American Civil Liberties Union is “highly likely to prevail” at trial on its claims that the detention of immigrant children at the T. Don Hutto facility in Taylor, Texas is an abuse of discretion by federal officials and violates applicable legal standards.

ACLU Challenges Illegal Detention of Immigrant Children Held in Prison-Like Conditions (03/06/2007)
AUSTIN, TX - The American Civil Liberties Union today filed lawsuits on behalf of ten immigrant children, challenging their illegal detention at the T. Don Hutto facility in Taylor, Texas.

ACLU of Massachusetts Blasts Governor’s Plan to Use State Police as Federal Immigration Agents (06/22/2006)
BOSTON -- A plan by Governor Mitt Romney to use state police as federal immigration agents will undermine public safety by diverting scarce police resources away from real crime fighting and deterring residents from reporting crimes, while increasing the risk of illegal racial and ethnic profiling, said lawyers with the American Civil Liberties Union of Massachusetts.

As Senate Immigration Bill Stalls, ACLU Calls for Much-Needed Fixes, Says Lawmakers Must Act to Protect Due Process and Privacy (04/07/2006)
WASHINGTON - As legislation to reform the nation’s immigration laws stalled in the Senate today, the American Civil Liberties Union urged lawmakers to modify that legislation to better protect privacy, judicial review and due process rights.