{
  "id": "RL31606",
  "type": "CRS Report",
  "typeId": "REPORTS",
  "number": "RL31606",
  "active": false,
  "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
  "versions": [
    {
      "source": "EveryCRSReport.com",
      "id": 102082,
      "date": "2002-11-04",
      "retrieved": "2016-05-24T20:02:50.234941",
      "title": "Detention of Noncitizens in the United States",
      "summary": "The events following the attacks of September 11 have increased interest in the authority of the\nAttorney General to detain noncitizens (aliens) in the United States. The Attorney General has broad\nauthority to detain aliens (noncitizens) while awaiting a determination of whether the noncitizen\nshould be removed from the United States. The law also mandates that certain categories of aliens\nare subject to mandatory detention, i.e., the aliens must be detained. Aliens subject to mandatory\ndetention include those arriving without documentation or with fraudulent documentation, those who\nare inadmissable or deportable on criminal grounds, those who are inadmissable or deportable on\nnational security grounds, those certified as a terrorist suspect, and those who have final orders of\ndeportation. Aliens not subject to mandatory detention may be detained, paroled, or released on\nbond. The priorities for detention of these aliens are specified in statute and regulations.\n  In FY2001, the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) detained 20,429 noncitizens. On\naverage the noncitizens spent 42.5 days in detention with a median time of 15 days. During the same\nperiod, 6,808 juveniles were detained and of these 4,675 were unaccompanied. The majority of the\nunaccompanied juveniles were male with an average age of 15. However, 50% of the\nunaccompanied juveniles were 16 years of age or older. The majority of unaccompanied juveniles\nwere released in under 30 days. During FY2001, INS budgeted $1,477,650 for detention purposes.\n  There are many policy issues surrounding detention of aliens, including several recent court\ncases seeking to address issues of detention. The Illegal Immigrant Reform and Immigrant\nResponsibility Act of 1996 (IIRIRA) increased the number of aliens subject to mandatory detention,\nincreasing the number of aliens in detention from 9,011 in 1996 to 19,409 in 2002, and raised\nconcerns about the justness of mandatory detention, especially as it is applied to asylum seekers\narriving without proper documentation. Prior to IIRIRA, some aliens used fraudulent asylum claims\nas a way to illegally enter the country, thus, the law was changed such that asylum seekers are now\nsubject to mandatory detention prior to a credible fear hearing. Additionally, the increase in the\nnumber of mandatory detainees has raised concerns about the amount of detention space available\nto house INS detainees. Some contend that decisions on which aliens to release from detention and\nwhen to release the aliens from detention may be based on the amount of detention space, not on the\nmerits of an individual case. Concerns have also been raised about the treatment of certain groups\nof people in INS custody, including juveniles, administrative detainees who are held with criminals,\nand those detained as part of the investigation into September 11.",
      "type": "CRS Report",
      "typeId": "REPORTS",
      "active": false,
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          "url": "http://www.crs.gov/Reports/pdf/RL31606",
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          "images": null
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      ],
      "topics": []
    }
  ],
  "topics": [
    "American Law",
    "Domestic Social Policy"
  ]
}