Thread: It’s day 3 of the U.S. gov’t running under a Continuing Resolution (CR). ICE is expanding its system of immigration jails. People are dying from medical neglect and 1000s are held in remote jails w/out lawyers. It's all connected and Congress has to act. #DefundHate 1/
A CR is supposed to continue ICE at *flat* funding carried over from its 2019 spending bill. In 2019, Congress funded ICE to jail approximately 45,274 people daily. ICE reports they have 51,302 people in jail as of the end of FY2019. 2/
If history is any guide ICE will continue to expand under a CR through a mechanism called an “exception apportionment” that allows ICE to basically borrow ahead and never pay it back. This is what they did under last year’s CR and during the shutdown. buzzfeednews.com/article/hameda… 3/
ICE’s continued expansion of detention undermines Congress’s power of the purse. But more critically it is also devastating communities and causing so much suffering. 4/
On Tuesday, Nebane Abienwi died in ICE’s custody. He was 37, seeking asylum from Cameroon. Years of reporting on deaths in ICE custody shows there to be about a 50% chance that medical negligence contributed to his death. sandiegouniontribune.com/news/immigrati… 5/
ICE focuses much of its expansion in the south, isolating immigrants from loved ones and counsel. @SPLCenter attorney Jeremy Jong: “When you open 2,500 new beds in the span of six months to a year there is no way for legal services to meet that demand.” 6/ nola.com/news/article_9…
@splcenter I’ll update this thread each week with ICE’s detention data under a CR. Congress: please take seriously your oversight obligations and watch along with us and take action. The time to cut funds is NOW. #DefundHate immigrantjustice.salsalabs.org/defundhateacti… 7/
@splcenter UPDATE: So here's a twist: now into week 2 under the CR, and ICE has stopped updating detention data on its website. Sept. 21st was last update. This is illegal per sec. 226 of the FY19 Appropriations Act which is continued under this CR – ICE is required to update weekly. 8/ 
@splcenter Congress wrote sec. 226 after documenting ICE’s fiscally irresponsible spending patterns on detention for years. ICE has a history of improperly expanding detention under CRs. Members of Congress: ICE cannot get away with hiding these numbers to avoid accountability. 9/
@splcenter The data ICE is hiding masks human suffering & isolation. In one ICE jail in Louisiana, an 18 year old named Howard misses his father who ICE took a different jail from the port where they sought asylum. They haven't been allowed to talk to each other. 10/ startribune.com/louisiana-beco…
@splcenter #ImmigrationReporters, #ImmigrationTwitter, congressional staffers: Please contact ICE and demand to know why they are violating the law by withholding weekly detention data. Here’s their email and phone # to make it easier. #DefundHate 11/
@splcenter Thanks @Tanvim for flagging this new language up on the ICE website. But: REALLY?! Congress tells ICE they have to make this data public every week and they just get to decide they're going to take a pause? Checks and balances appearing to be nowhere in sight...
@splcenter @Tanvim Lo and behold ... ICE is now posting minimal detention data, at least allowing for public accounting of the numbers of those jailed under the CR: ice.gov/detention-mana…. Grateful for all the eyes that were on ICE on this one. 13/
@splcenter @Tanvim ICE's data now shows 50,117 people jailed as of 10/16 - 5,000 more people than congressional appropriations support. The day before this data posted, Roylan Hernández Díaz committed suicide in a La. jail. His wife asked, "How many more will there be?" motherjones.com/politics/2019/…
