On Jan. 29, President Trump signed the Laken Riley Act into law, mandating that the Department of Homeland Security detain certain undocumented foreign nationals who have been arrested for certain crimes and authorizing states to sue the federal government for certain alleged failures related to immigration enforcement.

Key Points:

  • The bill mandates that DHS detain individuals who (1) are unlawfully present in the United States or did not possess the necessary documents when applying for admission; and (2) have been charged with, arrested for, convicted of or admit to having committed acts that constitute the essential elements of burglary, theft, larceny or shoplifting.
  • States are authorized to sue the federal government for injunctive relief over:
    • A decision to release a non-U.S. national from custody.
    • Failure to fulfill requirements relating to inspecting individuals seeking admission into the United States, including requirements related to asylum interviews.
    • Failure to fulfill a requirement to stop issuing visas to nationals of a country that unreasonably denies or delays acceptance of nationals of that country.
    • Violation of limitations on immigration parole, such as the requirement that parole be granted only on a case-by-case basis.
    • Failure to detain an individual who has been ordered removed from the United States.
  • The full text of the bill can be read at congress.gov.

This alert has been provided by the BAL U.S. Practice Group.

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