By Nick Norlen, Staff Writer
Seton Hall Law School’s Center for Social Justice announced Monday that it has filed a lawsuit seeking to compel the Department of Homeland Security to release records on Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids on state residences housing illegal immigrants — including those that occurred in Princeton on Dec. 7 and in past years.
The suit was filed in federal court in conjunction with the Brazilian Voice, a regional Portuguese-language newspaper, under the Freedom of Information Act, with a request for the Department of Homeland Security “to release documents regarding its practice of executing pre-dawn, warrantless raids of immigrants’ homes throughout the state of New Jersey.”
Bassina Farbenblum, a Center for Social Justice attorney, said the suit is related to an underlying Freedom of Information Act request filed by both parties Dec. 14 that she said did not receive a government response within 20 business days — as stipulated by the Freedom of Information Act.
The hope is that the court can compel the government to respond to the request and release the information, she said.
According to the announcement by the center, the “lawsuit seeks to learn more about these ICE enforcement tactics by obtaining documentation of official policies and other records available to the public under the FOIA.”
The release cites “more than 40 suspected raids” and subsequent concerns about what methods were used.
”Because the ICE agents apparently don’t get search warrants and no official records are available, there is currently no way to know whether they had any legitimate basis or lawful authority to enter a particular home,” Center for Social Justice attorney Scott Thompson said in the release.
In December, ICE issued a 2007 fiscal year press release announcing the detainment of 2,079 “immigration violators.”
Many of the detainees were arrested by the state’s four Fugitive Operations Teams during raids targeting a specific fugitive.
However, ICE spokesman Michael Gilhooly said after the Dec. 7 raid in Princeton that agents have a right under federal law to question other individuals present during those raids — and arrest them if they cannot prove citizenship.
In addition to the Dec. 7 raid, which netted seven illegal immigrants from Guatemala — some of whom have already been deported — documents provided by the Center for Social Justice also list raids that occurred in Princeton and West Windsor in late 2004 and early 2005.
”We have been speaking with local advocates who have conveyed information about those raids,” Ms. Farbenbaum said, noting that accounts of those events are similar to details about raids that have taken place in nearly 30 municipalities statewide.
Ms. Farbenbaum said the only response by the Department of Homeland Security to the suit has been its denial of a request for expedited processing based on the center’s argument that the issue is a “matter of public interest” and necessitates a sense of urgency.
The center’s release states that the Department of Homeland Security disagreed, stating that “a preliminary search of the internet does not indicate that there is substantial current news interest concerning this topic,” and that there have been no other recent requests for information on ICE operations.
Ms. Farbenbaum said the government has 30 days to respond to the complaint, and said she expects that response by the end of February.
