Illegal Detention

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From the NYTimes - "
A growing number of United States citizens have been detained under Obama administration programs intended to detect illegal immigrants who are arrested by local police....Americans said their vehement protests that they were citizens went unheard by local police and jailers for days, with no communication with federal immigration agents to clarify the situation. Any case where an American is held, even briefly, for immigration investigation is a potential wrongful arrest because immigration agents lack legal authority to detain citizens.
My question is - is it wrongful arrest?
Turns out, it is.
Whats more, the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement actually knows this.  Check out this memo from John Morton (Asst. Secy), which sez

 As a matter of  law, ICE cannot asscrt its civil immigration enforcement authority to arrest and/or detain a USC .   Consequently, investigations into an individual's claim to U.S. citizenship should be prioritized... In all cases, any uncertainty about whether the evidence is probative of U.S. citizenship should weigh against detention
So, what exactly is 'proof' that the person isn't a USC?

  1. No ID Papers - Well, d'you carry your passport/birth-certificate around with you at all times?  Should you? Isn't that kind of what we tend to rail against (No National ID cards!  Freedom! etc.)
  2. Looking Foreign.  Well, odds are this means either Canadian or Mexican.  As far as looking Canadian goes, well, I guess we should throw anyone who is polite out of the country.  And as far as looking Mexican goes, I don't even want to go there.  What does that even mean?  Speaking spanish? Ever been to, oh, any border state?  What about Puerto Rico?  And for the rest of y'all, what about those of you who look Italian/German/Indian/Chinese/...  (yup, basically all Americans)?



So yeah, its all goofy and ridiculous.  Whats really depressing is that it turns out that, even if it is wrongful arrest, it still happens at the rate of about 4000 a year (ref. Virginia Journal of Social Policy and Law).

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