Case Overview

Muslim Advocates, in partnership with the Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights (CAIR) Coalition and the Legal Aid Justice Center, filed a class-action lawsuit to challenge a fundamentally unfair policy that keeps immigrants detained even after they win their cases, in violation of federal law.

Previously, when detained immigrants won their cases seeking withholding of removal, Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) would generally release them right away, barring some specific reason otherwise. But in the past year, ICE has enacted a new policy to hold all such immigrants in custody and keep them apart from their families for an additional 90 days. Withholding of removal, similar to asylum, is a protection granted by an immigration judge to people who have successfully proven they will be persecuted or killed if returned to their home country. The case challenges ICE’s ability to continue to detain people granted withholding of removal for an additional 90 days.

Case Details

Date filed: July 13, 2018

Court(s): United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia; United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit

Co-Counsel: Capital Area Immigrants’ Rights (CAIR) Coalition, Legal Aid Justice Center