Letter to President Obama regarding the Large-Scale Detention of Immigrant Mothers and Children

SUMMARY

The Committee on Immigration and Nationality Law wrote to President Obama and Homeland Security Secretary Jeh Johnson to express serious concern about the current large-scale detention of immigrant mothers and children. The Committee wrote that detention of these families, many of whom have fled extreme violence in their home countries, compounds existing trauma and distress for many mothers and children and raises serious due process concerns, including with regard to the lack of appointed counsel for these families. The letter strongly urges that the Administration stop detaining vulnerable immigrant mothers and children and release them on recognizance, bond, or supervision, except if there are exceptional circumstances.