Alternatives to Detention?

In a Congressional Quarterly story, Eleanor Stables writes that the head of immigrant detention at the Department of Homeland Security wants to expand alternatives to detention centers, which have come under criticism recently. John Torres, director of the Office of Detention and Removal Operations at U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, said in an interview that he would like to expand the use of some “Alternatives to Detention” programs that remotely monitor illegal immigrants awaiting a court appearance. The Electronic Monitoring Devices program requires illegal immigrants to call into a reporting system from a designated phone and wear ankle bracelets that emit a radio frequency that can be monitored. Another non-detention program, the Intensive Supervision Appearance program, involves the ankle bracelets, as well as curfews, and home and office visits. Illegal immigrants can decline to participate in the programs and instead opt for a detention center. The programs are less expensive ($22 a night) than detention ($95 a night).

These alternatives seem to make perfect sense if the real reason for detention is to ensure that noncitizens appear at their hearings.

KJ