Bishops: Immigrant detention system needs 'major reform'

The U.S. immigrant detention system treats detainees as criminals and needs “extensive reform,” according to a new joint report from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) and the Center for Migration Studies.

“It is time for our nation to reform this inhumane system, which unnecessarily detains persons, especially vulnerable populations, who are no threat to us and who should be afforded due process and legal protections,” said Seattle Bishop Eusebio Elizondo, chairman of the USCCB Committee on Migration.

WORLD documented some of the challenges with the immigrant detention system in reports last year. The federal government spends about $2 billion each year detaining around 400,000 immigrants, but the system is often lost amid the larger conversation about immigration reform. Although many detainees are being lawfully deported, some of them entered the country legally, and others are refugees.

The USCCB report criticized the detention system’s presumption of guilt, resulting in long-term detention for asylum seekers, human trafficking victims, survivors of torture, and mothers with children. The report assailed the federal government’s policy of detaining an average of 34,000 immigrants each day—a congressionally mandated quota that has drawn widespread criticism, especially since privately owned prisons directly benefit.

“Detention is treated as a pillar of the U.S. immigration enforcement system akin to border control or removal, but in fact it is a means to an end,” the report said. “The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) lacks the authority to imprison criminals and does not hold anybody awaiting trial or serving a criminal sentence.”

The report called for the federal government to use more detention alternatives to ensure immigrants appear for their court dates. Pilot programs using tools such as supervised release and electronic monitoring have proven largely successful, but Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) often does not use them.

Although alternatives could save taxpayers millions, Congress has shown little interest in reforming a system that costs about $150 per day, per detainee. Activists argue the savings would free up resources to hire more immigration judges, since the immigration court system is overloaded, causing lengthy case delays.

While the fiscal benefits could be significant, Russell Moore, president of the Southern Baptist Convention’s Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, told me the most compelling reason to reform the detention system is out of respect for human dignity. He said controlling the border is critically important, but policies should focus on keeping families together.

“The system, as it is, is in dire need of reform,” he said. “Children shouldn’t be treated the way we treat criminal offenders.”