The prospect of another round of mass deportations promised by United States President Donald Trump is once again generating concerns about detention procedures. One of Trump’s first executive orders signed in January 2025 declared a national emergency along the two major land borders with Canada and Mexico. This declaration paved the way for his “border czar,” Tom Homan, to intensify the pace of immigration raids and detentions.
According to statistics compiled by the Vera Institute of Justice in 2024, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) operated 1,081 migrant detention centers from 2008 to 2020. Thousands of foreigners were detained for reasons ranging from illegal border crossings and removal orders to asylum claims and routine immigration proceedings. Tom Homan foresees a major spike in detentions, so he has ordered the establishment of large detention camps along the border.
The law enforcement agencies that can detain foreigners include the Border Patrol, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and the ICE division of Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO). With this in mind, let’s review some of the detention processes.
Understanding ICE Detainers
Some foreigners are marked for immigration detention after arrests or encounters with law enforcement officers or prosecutors. The arrests may be related to traffic tickets, domestic disputes, misdemeanors, or felonies. ICE investigators manage databases that allow them to request a detainer for 48 hours.
When ICE detainers are executed, foreigners are transferred to immigration detention facilities, which in some cases are co-located with correction centers or occupy the sites of former Walmart stores. Detainees can contact immigration law firms or their loved ones to coordinate a possible release by posting a bond. However, this bail option may not be extended to those detained by ERO agents through court orders.
Most detentions have removal as a goal. Detainees should appear before immigration judges unless they voluntarily sign agreements to be deported. During the first Trump administration, many immigrants complained about being pressured and railroaded by ICE agents and their supervisors to skip going to court by signing agreements to expedite removal through Voluntary Departure. If this happens to you, make sure your San Diego immigration attorney knows about it. Foreigners under ICE detention can request due process, so the right legal strategy should always be to obtain bail and a Notice to Appear (NTA).
Although NTAs are issued to initiate removal proceedings, they can be argued before immigration judges. Detainees have the right to retain immigration attorneys. The judge can examine evidence and arguments in favor of detainees who wish to stay. This is when immigration law firms try to shape cases as efforts to obtain relief from removal. Eliminating or withholding removal can be done through asylum, Temporary Protected Status, and even by requesting applicable immigration benefits. Unfortunately, ICE detainers can last indefinitely unless attorneys can invoke the 2001 Zadvydas v. Davis decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, which recommends setting a maximum period of presumptive detention for six months.
If you have questions about detention, deportation, or any other aspect of immigration law, or if you need immigration services in San Diego, contact the immigration attorneys San Diego residents trust. The lawyers at KS Visa Law are the attorneys to call on when you need the most up-to-date information about immigration regulations. Call KS Visa Law today to schedule an appointment.
