If an undocumented person is arrested for any reason in the Charleston area, that person will most likely be screened by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) shortly after being taken into custody of local law enforcement. Then, even upon resolution of the underlying offense (for example, a ticket for No Driver’s License, or DUI), the person will not be able to get out of jail because ICE will have placed a “hold” on the individual so that they can take them into ICE custody. Once a person in the Lowcountry is moved from local custody to ICE custody, they are moved within a matter of days to an Immigration Detention Center in Georgia.
When ICE first takes a person into custody, they make a determination whether or not to set a bond for that person, and if so for what amount. (Under the Trump administration, it is our experience that it has been EXTREMELY rare for ICE to set a bond for a person at all and the most common outcome is that no bond is set by ICE).
Detainees may request that an immigration judge review ICE’s bond determination, and may present an argument to the judge as to why the bond should be lowered. This takes place during a bond redetermination hearing, often referred to as a bond hearing. This hearing occurs in Immigration Court where the person is detained by ICE, so for most individuals arrested in South Carolina, a bond determination hearing with an Immigration Judge will occur at the Atlanta, Georgia Immigration Court or the Stewart Immigration Court at the Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, GA. Many people held in detention are unable, because they lack access to counsel, to effectively advocates for their release on bond. The Stewart Detention Center has increased the availability of video meetings with attorneys for people in detention there. If you or a loved on would like to set up an Skype video consult for a person in custody, or an in person consult at a local jail before transport to an immigration detention center in Georgia, please contact our office.
