The Laken Riley Act
Photo Credit: AP/ Photo/ J.Scott Applewhite
The Laken Riley Act is the first immigration legislation for the 119th Congress and it passed in both the House of Representatives and the Senate on January 22nd. The next step is for President Trump to sign it into law.
What it does:
All undocumented immigrants who are arrested, charged, or convicted, including minor offenses such as nonviolent theft, are now required to be held without bond in immigrant detention. This is called mandatory detention.
Elimination of the right to request bond while in detention. Previously under due process rights all detained people regardless of immigration status had the right to request bond, access to a lawyer, and undergo hearing before being placed into deportation proceedings. Once this bill is signed into law, this is no longer the case. The denial of bond is a denial of an individual’s due process rights.
States can now sue the federal government over a wide range of immigration-related issues to overrule individual and policy decisions made by an administration.
When that person’s mother’s presence in the United States was lawful but temporary, and the person’s father was not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident (LPR or green card holders) at the time of said person’s birth.
What this means:
This bill contributes to the criminalization of undocumented immigrants, DACA recipients, and TPS holders in the United States. Without requiring due process or a conviction, it increases the threat of mass deportations and the separation of families.
It applies to those accused of low-level crimes, even if a judge decides the individual does not present a risk and releases them on bail.
There will be lawsuits in the coming weeks challenging parts of this bill seeking to overturn it.