Unauthorized Immigrant Bond Class Action Settlement Gets Green Light

Unauthorized Immigrant Bond Settlement Overview:

• Who: A judge has approved a class action settlement agreement between two formerly detained unauthorized immigrants and the U.S. Department of Justice.
• Why: The settlement prohibits judges from setting unreasonable bond amounts for detainees without considering their ability to pay.
• Where: The class action settlement was filed in California federal court.

A California federal judge has given the green light to a class action settlement that will prohibit judges from setting unreasonable bond amounts for detained, unauthorized immigrants without considering their financial circumstances, according to the settlement.

Named plaintiffs Xochitl Hernandez and Cesar Matias reportedly reached the class action settlement agreement with the U.S. Department of Justice in October 2021. The defendants deny any wrongdoing but agreed to settle the class action lawsuit to avoid the burden and expense of ongoing litigation, the settlement says.

Their deal prevents U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centers in the Central District of California from detaining unauthorized immigrants on bonds without considering their ability to pay. Many immigrants who are in the United States illegally have reportedly been held in detention because they could not afford to pay the bond amount.

On Monday, U.S. District Judge Jesus G. Bernal approved the immigration bond class action settlement.

Under the terms of the unauthorized immigrant bond class action settlement, judges must consider a detainee’s financial circumstances before setting a bond amount. The settlement does not change the process that ICE uses to determine whether the detained immigrant is eligible for release.

Unauthorized Immigrant Bond Class Action Lawsuit Background

Hernandez and Matias initially filed the class action lawsuit against the DOJ in 2016. Hernandez, originally from Mexico, had reportedly lived in the United States for 25 years before she was detained awaiting deportation. She was held on a $60,000 bond that she was unable to pay. 

After the class action lawsuit was filed, Hernandez was released on a $5,000 bond, paid for with the assistance of a community organization. She was ordered to wear an ankle monitor.

Matias, originally from Honduras, sought asylum in the United States because he was persecuted in his home country due to his sexual orientation. He was detained in a Santa Ana facility, held on a $3,000 bond that he was unable to pay. Matias reportedly remained in jail for four years, according to the settlement.

The unauthorized immigrant bond class action lawsuit was certified in 2016.

ICE has also faced allegations that it has violated immigrants’ rights in Florida by detaining them without probable cause.

What do you think about the undocumented immigrant bond class action settlement? Join the discussion in the comments section below!

Class Members are represented by Michael Bryan Kaufman of the ACLU Foundation of Southern California; Judy Rabinovitz, Michael K.T. Tan and Stephen Bonggyun Kang of the American Civil Liberties Foundation Immigrants’ Rights Project; Matthew Eric Sloan, Ashley Lynn Phillips and Winston Ping Hsiao of Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP; and Douglas Allen Smith of Mayer Brown LLP.

The Immigration Bond Class Action Lawsuit is Xochitl Hernandez, et al. v. Merrick Garland, et al., Case No. 5:16-cv-00620, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

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• Former-Detainees Deported to New Zealand Allege Mistreatment From Australian Government, Class Action Claims