Arizonans are likely familiar with the issues surrounding immigration. They might be interested in learning that the American Civil Liberties Union recently filed a lawsuit against the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency for allegedly detaining asylum seekers unfairly.

According to the ACLU, asylum seekers who pass the credible fear test are normally released on humanitarian parole while they wait for their hearings before immigration judges. Since the Trump administration came into power, however, the ACLU alleges that humanitarian parole has decreased from 90 percent of the asylum seekers down to zero in five offices located in El Paso, Texas; Philadelphia; Los Angeles; Newark, New Jersey; and Detroit, Michigan.

The ACLU claims that this drop in humanitarian parole releases cannot be attributed to an organic change. Instead, the ACLU states that the agency is ignoring its own guidelines under the Trump administration. The ACLU is asking the court to issue an injunction against ICE so that it is more accountable. The government claims that there has not been a wholesale shift in policy and that the five offices are simply outliers.

Eligibility for asylum depends on a number of different factors. People who wish to apply for asylum to stay in the U.S. may want to get help from immigration lawyers. The attorneys may advise clients about whether or not they appear to meet the eligibility guidelines. If their clients are unfairly detained, the attorneys may fight for their release on humanitarian parole until they have their hearings. This may allow people who are in danger if they are returned to their home countries to live and work in the U.S. while their asylum cases are pending.

Source: Chicago Sun-Times, “ACLU sues government over detention of asylum seekers,” Associated Press, May 17, 2018.