By Taylor S. Adams, Esq., Associate Attorney
Turning on the news or looking at social media nowadays comes with countless videos of ICE arrests throughout the country, even at places once considered protected, such as courthouses, places of worship, and hospitals. There are steps you can take to arm yourself with the knowledge to protect yourself, your family members, and your community. Distribution of “Know your Rights” information has garnered momentum since January of this year and below is a refresher on those important rights and guaranteed by the U.S. Constitution.
1. Do not open the door for ICE and do not consent to their entry into your home without a judicial warrant. Under the Fourth Amendment, all persons in the United States have the right against unreasonable search and seizure. There are two types of warrants: judicial warrants and administrative warrants. Administrative warrants, which are administered by an agency such as ICE, do not allow the officers to enter your home without consent; only a judicial warrant has that power. The vast majority of warrants ICE officers obtain are administrative warrants – it is incredibly rare for ICE to possess a judicial warrant for an immigration-related arrest. You are not obligated to open the door or allow the government’s entry into your home without a properly signed and issued judicial warrant.
2. Do not sign any documents without having a lawyer review them. Oftentimes, when ICE presents a noncitizen with paperwork, they are trying to pressure them into unknowingly signing a deportation order. Many individuals are provided documents by ICE in English – a language in which they are not fluent. This makes it even more important to have a qualified immigration lawyer review and explain any documents ICE is handing you. Additionally, it is important to assess any verbal or written information provided to you by an ICE officer (especially in a detention center) for accuracy with a qualified immigration lawyer. Information given by ICE officers can often be incorrect or not applicable to the person’s specific case and may impact the legal outcome of your immigration case.
3. You have the right to remain silent when asked any questions, but most importantly those about your immigration status, country of birth, citizenship, and the way you entered the United States. Use this right! The only question you must answer is your name. It is important to remember that many forms of identification identify what country you are from (such as a work permit, passport, or national ID card), and oftentimes those are the only identity documents a person has when asked for an ID by an officer. You are not required to show an ID that lists your nationality and, if possible, provide an ID that does not list your nationality, such as a U.S. state driver’s license or state or local ID. Many major cities, including Philadelphia and New York City, provide the option to get a municipal ID card that contains your name and photo and can be used if asked for a government-issued ID card.
We advise that you do not answer the following questions, and instead may politely inform the officer that you will not answer his or her questions pursuant to your Fifth Amendment constitutional rights and ask to call your immigration lawyer:
1. Questions about your immigration status
2. Questions about how and when you entered the United States
3. Questions about where you were born or where you hold citizenship
If you do not have an immigration lawyer, tell the officers you will not answer any of their questions until you have spoken with a lawyer. This is a vitally important right to utilize. Any information you provide to ICE concerning your immigration status can be used against you to establish that you are removable (deportable) from the United States. Invoking your Fifth Amendment right to remain silent can be crucial, as sometimes a person’s own statements are the only evidence ICE has of the person’s status.
4. If you are stopped by ICE outside your home, ask the officer if you are free to leave, and if they say yes, calmly walk away. It is important to remember that your rights differ depending on the location ICE attempts to approach you. In your home, you have a reasonable expectation of privacy, and therefore ICE cannot enter your home without a judicial warrant or you or someone else’s consent. The same protections do not exist in public places, such as the street, grocery and retail stores, or the gym. Immigration officers can only conduct a brief investigative stop if they have reasonable suspicion that an immigration law was violated or that the person is present in the United States without status. Race or ethnicity on its own, under the law, is not enough for reasonable suspicion to be stopped and questioned by an ICE officer.
Your rights at your place of employment lie somewhere in the middle. ICE and other law enforcement can enter public spaces of a workplace, such as a restaurant dining room or the parking lot and retail space of hardware stores, and question people, with reasonable suspicion. They cannot, however, enter the private areas of the workplace that are off limits to the public, including break rooms, back offices, the kitchen of a restaurant, and anywhere else that is titled “employees only” or “private.”
When witnessing an ICE arrest of someone in public, it is important to document what is happening. You are permitted to photograph, film, and otherwise document the arrest, so long as it is occurring on public property and you do not actively obstruct or interfere with the officers’ actions. If you are a safe distance away, you may continue to document the incident, even if the officer demands you stop, as it is a right protected under the Constitution. The officers also cannot confiscate or demand to see your photos or video footage without obtaining a warrant, and they cannot delete the date or force you to delete it. The audio recording of a videotape, however, has less protections than photographic documentation in certain states, and it is important to research your local and state laws concerning recording audio in a public place. The ACLU has helpful information regarding this topic for all states.
It is also crucial to get as much identifying information of the person being arrested as possible, most importantly their name and date of birth. Individuals detained by ICE can be located online. To be able to find them in the system, however, you will need their country of birth and either their A number (alien number), or name and date of birth.
This article serves to provide general information on the rights of all noncitizens in the United States. An experienced immigration attorney should be consulted for any case-specific questions. Global Immigration Legal Team is always available to determine any viable pathways for a person who has a removal order.
If you know you have a removal order, or if you know you encountered ICE but are unsure if you actually have an order or removal, please feel free to contact Taylor S. Adams, Esq. or call our office at (610) 975-4599 to schedule a consultation today.
Be sure to mention this article when reaching out for your consultation.
Reviewed by Kelsey E. Logar, Esq., Senior Associate Attorney