Council Files Amicus Brief on the Legality of Prolonged Mandatory Detention

The amicus brief in Ayom v. Garland urges the eighth circuit to affirm that mandatory detention under 8 U.S.C. § 1226(c) has constitutional limits, and reject the government's invitation to endorse prolonged mandatory detention for people in removal proceedings.

The brief argues that prolonged, mandatory detention violates the Due Process Clause. The brief also argues that individuals held under Section 1226(c) mandatory detention often face substantially longer detention periods, and substantially greater deprivations of liberty. And with the government’s increased use of alternatives to detention, mandatory detention has become increasingly unnecessary to address the safety and flight risks.

The American Immigration Council filed this amicus brief with the American Immigration Lawyers Association, and the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild.