The ICE Storm in U.S. Homes: An Urgent Call for Policy Change

Authors

Katherine Evans, Duke Law SchoolFollow

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2009

Keywords

immigration, raids, Fourth Amendment, exclusion

Abstract

Since its creation in 2003, the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has used increasingly aggressive tactics to enforce U.S. immigration law. One of ICE's most prominent enforcement initiatives is its practice of raiding the homes of immigrants. Accounts of home raids from victims all over the country reveal a pattern of practice that differs widely from ICE's official statements regarding raids. This paper establishes that although immigration officials are governed by the Fourth Amendment when conducting home raids, ICE's agents nonetheless regularly violate the Constitution when carrying out home raids. Additionally, this paper argues that the number and nature of these constitutional violations, combined with the social costs of the raids, present a compelling case for policy change. The paper concludes with a series of policy proposals that would rectify the profound invasions of privacy and degrading treatment many immigrants in this country are currently experiencing.

Citation

Katherine Evans, The ICE Storm in U.S. Homes: An Urgent Call for Policy Change, 33 New York University Review of Law and Social Change 561-611 (2009)