A lawsuit has been filed to prevent federal immigration enforcement agents from entering home without a judicial warrant.
The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and others filed a lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security in the U.S. District Court for the District of Washington, D.C., on the 2nd. The lawsuit aims to invalidate an internal guideline issued last May by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), which allows agents to enter residences based solely on an “administrative warrant” issued by the administration, without a “judicial warrant” issued by a court, for the arrest of individuals whose orders have been finalized.
The lawsuit was filed by civil organizations representing victims who claim their constitutional rights have been violated due to unlawful intrusions caused by the new guideline. In the complaint, the plaintiffs argued that “the internal guideline violates the Fourth Amendment, which prohibits unlawful searches and seizures, and is a measure to circumvent judicial oversight.”
The existence of ICE’s new guidelines came to light earlier this year through a whistleblower’s report and sparked fierce controversy as they effectively overturn long-standing administration guidelines and court precedents regarding home searches. While an executive warrant is an internal document authorizing the arrest of a specific individual, it does not grant enforcement agents the authority to forcibly enter private property; thus, a judicial warrant signed by a federal or state judge has traditionally been required to enter homes or businesses. However, the new ICE guidelines state that for the arrest of immigrants facing deportation orders, authorities can enter homes and conduct searches and arrests without the resident’s consent using only an executive warrant, which was previously considered to lack the authority for forced entry.
For years, immigrant advocacy groups and legal organizations have advised against opening doors to immigration enforcement agents unless presented with a judicial warrant signed by a judge, and the new ICE guidelines effectively nullify this advice.
According to the Associated Press, while it is unclear how widely the guidelines were applied to immigration enforcement operations, significant controversy arose after it was revealed that heavily armed ICE agents were carrying only an executive warrant when they broke down the front door of a Liberian man’s home and arrested him in Minneapolis last January.