Between 2015 and 2020, ICE deported at least 70 people who were U.S. citizens, according to the GAO. That’s not just a bureaucratic mistake — it’s a constitutional violation.

U.S. citizens cannot be deported under civil immigration law. Yet GAO found that ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) lack the records to even know how many people they may have deported in error.

In total, the watchdog found that ICE arrested 674 potential U.S. citizens, detained 121, and deported 70 — all of whom may have been legally untouchable by immigration enforcement.

And the actual number could be much higher.

  • tabularasa@lemmy.ca
    link
    fedilink
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    3 days ago

    It’s not “deporting” if they are citizens, ffs. These shit articles not calling it what it is. Kidnapping.

  • sun_is_ra@sh.itjust.works
    link
    fedilink
    English
    arrow-up
    0
    ·
    3 days ago

    Trying to find the illegal immigrants among the population is a difficult, time consuming task.

    A better approach is deporting everyone. The citizens would be able to return eventually ;/

    • teawrecks@sopuli.xyz
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      3 days ago

      Hah this is one of those “Robot, solve world suffering” type solutions. “Affirmative. There can be no suffering if there is no life. Proceeding to eradicate all life.”

      Can’t have illegal immigrants if you don’t have any people.

    • ryven@lemmy.dbzer0.com
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      3 days ago

      One guy tried and was told that he wasn’t owed any money, because the statute of limitations had expired… while he was being imprisoned without access to counsel.

      https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2017/08/ice-detained-a-u-s-citizen-named-davino-watson-for-three-years.html

      Last year [in 2016], a district judge in New York awarded him $82,500 in damages, citing “regrettable failures of the government.” On Monday, an appeals court ruled that Watson, now 32, is not eligible for any of that money — because while his case is “disturbing,” the statute of limitations actually expired while he was still in ICE custody without a lawyer.

    • Bob Robertson IX @discuss.tchncs.de
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      3 days ago

      Potentially… if you ever get to a position when you can actually file a lawsuit. If you are a US citizen and not a citizen of the country you are being deported to then that means the country accepting you knows that you are not actually one of their citizens and may actually detain you. Even if you are released, you will likely have no identification and no resources. And even if you do happen to contact a lawyer, how would you prove that you are a citizen?

      ICE and Customs and Border Protection (CBP) lack the records to even know how many people they may have deported in error

      And if the government isn’t keeping records of who they have deported then it is going to be even more difficult to prove that you’ve been illegally deported.

      • Glitterbomb@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        3 days ago

        My college buddy was adopted at the age of 1 from India into a rich white american family. After high school he joined the marines without issue. A bit later, after college, around 2010, he gets picked up for a simple drug possession charge. Booking sent his finger prints to ICE/DHS who decided something was wrong with his adoption papers and he needs to go back to India. They took him from the local jail and stuffed him in a federal black hole for 6 months. His family took the federal government to court and won. He got out and was awarded something like 6 figures every year for a long ass time.

        He still left the country when he got out anyway. I don’t blame him.

      • MNByChoice@midwest.social
        link
        fedilink
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        3 days ago

        We almost need some sort of system to notice when people are missing. Not family members, as all can go missing at once. Widely distributed with enough resources to push for our rights.

      • reddig33@lemmy.world
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        3 days ago

        Depends on if you have family, and if they can get help from someone like the ACLU. Making the arrestor or person who ordered the arrest personally responsible is the only way this is going to stop. If they fear being thrown in jail themselves, or bankrupted for a false arrest, things might change.

    • 9point6@lemmy.world
      link
      fedilink
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      3 days ago

      I think you should probably edit the title to clarify this, it seems a bit misleading in the light of everything going on right now

      • The Quuuuuill@slrpnk.net
        link
        fedilink
        English
        arrow-up
        0
        ·
        3 days ago

        community rules is not to editorialize titles, just use them verbatim. the problem i see with that is what you’re saying: the titles come pre-editorialized

    • HubertManne@piefed.social
      link
      fedilink
      English
      arrow-up
      0
      ·
      3 days ago

      Yeah I was thinking the same. This was before the massive increase in deportation flights and crocodile Dachau.