Videoconferencing in Removal Hearings: A Case Study of the ...

Videoconferencing is increasingly being used to conduct hearings in immigration
court. This phenomenon is driven in no small part by the growing population of
immigrants held in detention in the United States, often in locations remote from the
immigration courts. 1 Immigration reforms enacted
in 1996 mandated the detention of many immigrants
placed in “removal” (formerly deportation or
exclusion) proceedings, and the current enforcement
priorities of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) have increased the number of
detained immigrants. 2 Immigrants are held in special private or government-
administered detention facilities, in state or county prisons, and sometimes in local jails. 3
Confronted with a shortage of Immigration Judges and the logistical problem of
transporting detained immigrants to court, the Executive Office for Immigration Review
(EOIR), the agency of the Department of Justice responsible for carrying out removal
proceedings, sees videoconference hearings as a solution.
1 In fiscal year 2003, 231,500 immigrants were detained in the United States by the Department of
Homeland Security. The average daily detention population was 21,133. UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF
HOMELAND SECURITY, CUSTOMS AND IMMIGRATION SERVICES, YEARBOOK OF IMMIGRATION STATISTICS
148 (2003). Between 1994 and 2003, the number of detainees increased at an annual rate of almost 12%,
resulting in a total increase of over 171%. OFFICE OF THE INSPECTOR GENERAL, AUDIT OF THE
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, OFFICE OF THE FEDERAL DETENTION TRUSTEE, AUDIT REPORT NO. 05-04
(December 2004), available at http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/reports/OBD/a0504.
2 See 8 U.S.C. 1226(c) (2005) (mandating detention of all aliens in removal proceedings who have been
convicted of various broad categories of crimes). In fiscal year 2003, 1,046,422 aliens were apprehended
by DHS, the majority (931,557) by Border Patrol. Yearbook, supra, note 1, at 146. That same year,
1,505,073 aliens were either formally removed, granted voluntary departure, or withdrew applications for
admission. This represented an increase of 24% from 2002. Id. at 149.
3 See MARK DOW, AMERICAN GULAG: INSIDE U.S. IMMIGRATION PRISONS 9 (2004). Sixty percent of all
detainees in 2003 were held in local prisons and jails and in private contract facilities. Id.
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To date, EOIR has not conducted a
formal study of the effectiveness of
videoconferencing, nor does it
maintain statistics concerning
videoconferencing outcomes
relative to non-videoconferencing
outcomes.