Letters to the 108th Congress

May 30, 2003

Ms. Deborah Parot
Contract Specialist
Direct Reports
Bureau of Citizenship
Burlington Administrative Center
70 Kimball Avenue
Burlington, VT 05403

Dear Ms. Parot:

I write in response to the "Sources Sought Notice" (ACB-3-R-0033) posted by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) regarding the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program for people in immigration detention. The American Bar Association (ABA) has long supported release alternatives to detention for people in immigration detention and commends DHS for taking steps toward implementing such a program. Please accept this letter as an expression of ABA interest in participating in the shaping of an appearance assistance program.

The ABA is a voluntary, national membership organization of the legal profession, with more than 410,000 members from each state and territory and the District of Columbia, including prosecutors, judges, private lawyers, and law enforcement personnel.

The ABA is deeply committed to ensuring that foreign nationals in the United States receive fair treatment under the nation's immigration laws. Since 1990, the ABA has maintained and recommended to Congress that immigration authorities should detain noncitizens with pending immigration hearings only in the least restrictive environment, consistent with the public safety, and should develop supervised pre-hearing release programs. We, therefore, welcome Congress' funding of these efforts and an opportunity to participate in their design.

The ABA also has particular expertise in this area. We adopted a comprehensive set of pretrial release standards in the criminal justice context, where more than 300 counties and all 94 federal court districts have a pretrial services agency and supervised release program. The ABA also has created pro bono programs to assist individuals in immigration proceedings and worked closely with the Department of Justice to establish Detention Standards allowing immigrants access to legal representation and materials. In addition, the ABA has conducted or participated in numerous delegations to immigration detention facilities.

We are eager to participate in the discussion of how to implement a program that realistically meets immigration enforcement needs and protects individual rights. Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,
Robert D. Evans

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