2021 in Review: Immigration Bond Data Report
On a given day, between 15,000 and 40,000 people are being jailed by ICE.
As of September 2022, 25,134 people were being detained — an increase of more than 80% from the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Indefinite detention is wrong for any person. Even immigrants who were arrested by ICE after being accused or convicted of a crime should not be punished twice for the same mistake. But most people jailed by ICE are detained solely based on their immigration status: 66% of people currently in detention have no criminal record.
Immigration Detention in Minnesota
ICE uses hundreds of jails, prisons, and other facilities to detain immigrants.
Minnesota has 6 detention sites jailing about 120 people, down from the pre-pandemic peak of 446.
While most sites nationwide are run by private for-profit companies, Minnesota's six facilities are based in county jails in Freeborn Co., Sherburne Co., Carver Co., Kandiyohi Co., Nobles Co., and Polk Co.
Who We Help
MFF pays immigration bonds for people with connections to Minnesota, North Dakota, and South Dakota who are detained by ICE and have been made eligible for release on bond by an ICE agent or immigration judge.
While MFF prioritizes bonds for Minnesotans, through our partnership with the National Bail Fund Network we are connected to people held in detention around the country. Of our Minnesota clients, the overwhelming majority are incarcerated at one of the six facilities in Minnesota — although many are transferred elsewhere.
Supporting Refugees
From left: Julian Alvarez, Mirella Ceja-Orozco, and Adriana Lopez at Ft. McCoy.
In November 2021, MFF went to Fort McCoy, WI to assist detained evacuees who fled Afghanistan during the Taliban invasion. We were invited by Catholic Charities to educate evacuees about our program, present "know your rights" information, explain immigration processes, and assist with filling out paperwork.
Bond Amounts by Country of Origin
MFF paid $811,500 to free 76 people from detention in 2021.
Like cash bail, people released on immigration bonds are allowed to wait at home, instead of in detention, while their immigration cases are pending.
MFF pays a significant number of bonds for Black immigrants, including people from Somalia and Haiti.
Our data on Black immigrants reflects what other organizations have found. Between 2018 and 2020, RAICES found that bond amounts requested from them by Black Haitian immigrants were 54% higher than for other immigrants.
In our data, this gap is even more alarming. Last year, the average bond amount requested from MFF by immigrants from Somalia and Haiti was $26,325, compared to $6,980 for other immigrants who requested support.
That means the bond amount requested from MFF by Black immigrants was 277% higher than for others, reflecting the reality of anti-Black racism in the immigration detention system.
In 2021 MFF posted a $100,000 bond, the largest known bond ever paid in Minnesota and more than 13 times the average bond amount. The bond was paid for an immigrant from Somalia.
Conclusion
In addition to paying immigration bonds, MFF's Immigration Team is active in the community supporting immigrants, developing relationships, and working to reduce detention in Minnesota.
In 2021, MFF provided more than 110 hours of pro bono translation services at Minnesota's Enforcement Removal Office, supporting people reporting for check-ins, filling our paperwork, or advocating for a change in their release conditions.
Staff collaborate with the University of Minnesota Law School and the Volunteer Lawyers Network on TPS and asylum cases; the team worked on 1 TPS case and 2 asylum cases in 2021.