Assistant Leader Neguse Issues Statement After Court Orders DHS to Restore Congressional Oversight of ICE Detention Facilities
Emergency Ruling Reaffirms the Right and Duty of Members of Congress to Conduct Unannounced Inspections Amid Alarming Reports of Abuse
Washington, D.C. — Assistant Democratic Leader Joe Neguse issued the following statement after a federal court granted emergency relief to him and 12 other Members of Congress, ordering the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to restore plaintiffs’ unannounced congressional oversight of ICE detention facilities. The ruling enforces federal law and reaffirms Congress’s constitutional authority to investigate detention conditions and ensure accountability.
“The Court’s decision today to grant a temporary restraining order against ICE’s unlawful effort to obstruct congressional oversight is a victory for the American people. We will keep fighting to ensure the rule of law prevails,” said Assistant Democratic Leader Joe Neguse.
After the court preliminarily stayed a DHS policy requiring members of Congress to provide prior notice of oversight visits to ICE facilities in December, and following the fatal shooting of a U.S. citizen by a federal agent in Minnesota, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem secretly reinstated the requirement through a previously undisclosed memorandum. The memo came to light only after multiple members of Congress were denied entry to an ICE facility in Minnesota despite presenting a valid court order. Today’s decision follows another emergency motion filed by Democracy Forward and American Oversight on behalf of the members, after those unlawful denials of entry pursuant to the new DHS memo. Those denials of entry directly interfere with Congress’s right and duty to investigate detention conditions, ensure compliance with the law, and respond to rising reports of abuse and violence inside detention centers.
The court’s ruling restores the plaintiff members’ ability to enter detention facilities in real time, speak with detainees, and investigate conditions that include overcrowding, shackling, denial of medical care, and lack of access to counsel.
In addition to Assistant Democratic Leader Joe Neguse, plaintiffs include Congressional Hispanic Caucus Chair Rep. Adriano Espaillat; Homeland Security Committee Ranking Member Rep. Bennie G. Thompson; Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Rep. Jamie Raskin; House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Ranking Member Rep. Robert Garcia; House Homeland Security Committee Subcommittee on Border Security and Enforcement Ranking Member Rep. J. Luis Correa; and Reps. Jason Crow, Veronica Escobar, Dan Goldman, Jimmy Gomez, Kelly Morrison, Raul Ruiz, and Norma Torres.
The case is Joe Neguse et al. v. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, et al. The Members of Congress are represented in this suit by Democracy Forward Foundation and American Oversight.
Read the order HERE.
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