Opinion ID: 3150212
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Nature of Civil Immigration Detention

Text: Class members spend, on average, 404 days in immigration detention. Nearly half are detained for more than one year, one in five for more than eighteen months, and one in ten for more than two years. In some cases, detention has lasted much longer: As of April 28, 2012, when the government generated data to produce to the petitioners, one class member had been detained for 1,585 days, approaching four and a half years of civil confinement.4 4 The government challenges the accuracy of these figures, which are drawn from petitioners’ expert report, based on disagreements with that expert’s methodology. Using the government’s preferred data set and process generates an average detention length of 347 days and a range of 180 to 1,037 days of civil detention for each non-citizen. Under either set RODRIGUEZ V. ROBBINS 21 Non-citizens who vigorously pursue claims for relief from removal face substantially longer detention periods than those who concede removability. Requesting relief from an IJ increases the duration of class members’ detention by an average of two months; appealing a claim to the BIA adds, on average, another four months; and appealing a BIA decision to the Ninth Circuit typically leads to an additional eleven months of confinement. Class members who persevere through this lengthy process are often successful: About 71% of class members have sought relief from removal, and roughly one-third of those individuals prevailed. However, many detainees choose to give up meritorious claims and voluntarily leave the country instead of enduring years of immigration detention awaiting a judicial finding of their lawful status. Class members frequently have strong ties to this country: Many immigrated to the United States as children, obtained legal permanent resident status, and lived in this country for as long as twenty years before ICE initiated removal proceedings. As a result, hundreds of class members are married to U.S. citizens or lawful permanent residents, and have children who were born in this country. Further, many class members hold steady jobs—including as electricians, auto mechanics, and roofers—to provide for themselves and their families. At home, they are caregivers for young children, aging parents, and sick or disabled relatives. To the extent class members have any criminal record—and many have no criminal history whatsoever—it is often limited to minor controlled substances offenses. Accordingly, when class members do receive bond hearings, they often produce of figures, typical class members are detained for well over 180 days. The differences in precise numbers are not material to our decision. 22 RODRIGUEZ V. ROBBINS glowing letters of support from relatives, friends, employers, and clergy attesting to their character and contributions to their communities. Prolonged detention imposes severe hardship on class members and their families. Civil immigration detainees are treated much like criminals serving time: They are typically housed in shared jail cells with no privacy and limited access to larger spaces or the outdoors. Confinement makes it more difficult to retain or meet with legal counsel, and the resources in detention facility law libraries are minimal at best, thereby compounding the challenges of navigating the complexities of immigration law and proceedings. In addition, visitation is restricted and is often no-contact, dramatically disrupting family relationships. While in detention, class members have missed their children’s births and their parents’ funerals. After losing a vital source of income, class members’ spouses have sought government assistance, and their children have dropped out of college. Lead petitioner Alejandro Rodriguez’s story is illustrative. Rodriguez came to the United States as an infant and has lived here continuously since then. Rodriguez is a lawful permanent resident of the United States, and his entire immediate family—including his parents, siblings, and three young children—also resides in the United States as citizens or lawful permanent residents. Before his removal proceedings began, Rodriguez worked as a dental assistant. In 2003, however, Rodriguez was convicted of possession of a controlled substance and sentenced to five years of probation and no jail time. He had one previous conviction, for “joyriding.” RODRIGUEZ V. ROBBINS 23 In 2004, ICE commenced removal proceedings and subjected Rodriguez to civil detention. An IJ determined that Rodriguez’s prior conviction for “joyriding,” i.e. driving a stolen vehicle, qualified as an “aggravated felony” that rendered him ineligible for relief in the form of cancellation of removal, and therefore ordered him removed. Rodriguez appealed the IJ’s decision to the BIA, which affirmed, and then to the Ninth Circuit. In July 2005, a three-judge panel of our court granted the government’s motion to hold Rodriguez’s case in abeyance until the Supreme Court decided a related case, Gonzales v. Penuliar, 549 U.S. 1178 (2007), which issued eighteen months later, in January 2007. In Penuliar, the Supreme Court vacated our court’s opinion and remanded for further consideration in light of Gonzales v. Duenas-Alvarez, 549 U.S. 183 (2007), which held that violating a California statute prohibiting taking a vehicle without the owner’s consent qualifies as a “theft offense.” Between July 2005 and January 2007, while Rodriguez’s case was in abeyance, ICE conducted four custody reviews on Rodriguez and repeatedly determined that Rodriguez was required to remain in detention until our court issued a decision on the merits of his claim. In mid-2007, about a month after Rodriguez had moved for class certification, however, ICE released him. At that point, Rodriguez had been detained for 1,189 days, roughly three years and three months. In April 2008, in the related case on remand from the Supreme Court, our court held that driving a stolen vehicle did not qualify as an aggravated felony. Penuliar v. Mukasey, 528 F.3d 603, 614 (9th Cir. 2008). On motion of the parties, we then remanded Rodriguez’s petition to the BIA, which granted his application for cancellation of removal, vindicating his right to lawfully remain in the United States. 24 RODRIGUEZ V. ROBBINS