Immigration Enforcement & Detention

The ACLU-NJ has been instrumental in limiting how local law enforcement interacts with federal immigration officials, ensuring access to due process for detained people, curbing immigration detention in New Jersey, and holding detention centers accountable.

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Our immigration detention system locks up hundreds of thousands of immigrants unnecessarily every year, separating families and exposing people in detention to brutal and inhumane conditions of confinement.

In America, and in New Jersey, liberty should be the norm for everyone. The ACLU-NJ has been instrumental in limiting how local law enforcement interacts with federal immigration officials, ensuring access to due process for detained people, curbing immigration detention in New Jersey, and holding detention centers accountable.

The Latest

Press Release
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ACLU-NJ Responds to the Third Circuit’s Ruling in CoreCivic, Inc. v. Murphy+

Today, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals found AB 5207, a state law prohibiting private detention contracts within state borders, to be unconstitutional. 
News & Commentary
barbed wire on top of a fence

President Trump’s Plans to Detain Immigrants at a Military Base in NJ Set a Dangerous Precedent for Our Democracy

Turning military bases into massive tent detention sites is not only unnecessary and costly; it’s another dehumanizing spectacle designed to intimidate all of us and deprive those detained of their rights.
News & Commentary
We The People

New Jersey Must Continue to Protect the Rights of Immigrant Communities Despite Trump Administration’s Intimidation Attempts

The Trump administration is targeting New Jersey for lawfully declining to carry out its anti-immigrant agenda.
Press Release
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ACLU-NJ Responds to Federal Indictment of Congresswoman LaMonica McIver

The indictment of Congresswoman McIver by the U.S. Department of Justice is an outrageous and unprecedented escalation of the Trump administration’s intimidation campaign against those who refuse to do its bidding.
Court Case
Apr 22, 2025

Student Doe #1, et al v. Noem, et al

Complaint filed on behalf of Rutgers students who had their F-1 student immigration status effectively terminated.
Court Case
Jan 10, 2024

CoreCivic, Inc. v. Murphy 

Amicus brief in support of a state law prohibiting new, renewed, or expanded immigration detention contracts in New Jersey.
Court Case
Apr 12, 2022

State v. Francisco

Amicus brief in case examining voluntariness of confession where police told the suspect that his statement would not impact his immigration status.
Court Case
Nov 10, 2020

Miguel S., et al. v. Tsoukaris, et al.

Habeas corpus petition seeking release from ICE custody on behalf of two individuals held at the Essex County Correctional Facility based on their medical vulnerabilities to COVID-19.