Detainees Leaving ICE Detention from the
Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile)
El Paso, Texas
132 |
157 |
- |
13100 % |
- |
top 51 % |
Table 1: Number leaving ICE detention
from this facility
During the most recent 12 month period for which data are available, a total of 132 detainees housed
at the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) left that facility because they were deported, were released under
supervision while their cases were being decided, or left ICE detention for one of a variety of other reasons.
This is a special facility for housing juveniles.
Use of this facility was handled by the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR),
Division of Unaccompanied Children's Services, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
Those individuals who departed from this facility because they were leaving ICE detention made up 84 percent of
the 157 detainees housed at this facility during the last 12 months.
This report focuses on the reasons these individuals left ICE detention.
Sometimes this report speaks of these individuals as those "exiting" ICE detention, or simply as "exits."
The other 16 percent remained in ICE detention but were transferred from the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) to other facilities.
This report covers those who left ICE custody.
It excludes individuals transferred to other ICE facilities.
For more information on this facility, including individuals that were transferred, see additional TRAC reports in this series.
This report series is based upon analyses conducted by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC)
at Syracuse University of 3.4 million government records tracking each individual who passed through an
ICE detention facility during the past decade.
The most recent 12 month period for which comprehensive data are available is for April 2007 through
March 2008. See About the Data.
How This Facility Ranks Nationally
Rankings on the number leaving ICE detention. The Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) was one of 1,528 facilities that were used to
house immigration detainees during the last decade, and one of 654 facilities
nationwide that housed ICE detainees during the most recent 12 month period. Of
these 654, there were 324 facilities that had at least 10 individuals who were deported or released.
Excluding those facilities with fewer than 10 exits, the
Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) last year ranked in the top 51 percent nationwide in
the number of individuals leaving ICE detention.
This means that 51 percent of the locations contributed the same or a
larger numbers of exits, while 49
percent had a smaller number. See Table 1.
Deportations. Nationally, the most common reason that a detainee left ICE detention was that they were deported from the United States.
During the most recent 12 month period for which comprehensive data are available, nationwide 81 percent
of those leaving ICE detention were deported or "voluntarily" departed.
By way of comparison, a lower percentage of detainees (39 percent) left the country from the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) because
they were formally deported, or left under the so-called "voluntary departure" procedure.
Trends in the Number of Detainees Deported or Released
Trends in the number leaving ICE detention. During the April 2006-March 2007 period the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile)
processed no deportations or other releases as compared with 132 last year.
As detailed in Table 1, numbers last year were however up greatly as compared with the number of those leaving
ICE detention (1) during FY 2005.
Figure 1: Month-by-month number of detainees leaving this facility
Longer term exit trends. Greater detail on these long-term trends for those leaving
ICE detention from the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) are displayed in Figure 1.
Here the month-by-month number of exits are graphed against the backdrop of the total detainees
leaving the custody of this facility.
Exits are displayed with darker shading while those transferred appear with lighter shading.
0 |
0 |
- |
0 |
0 |
- |
0 |
0 |
- |
0 |
0 |
- |
0 |
0 |
- |
101 |
8 |
8 % |
10 |
1 |
10 % |
1 |
0 |
0 % |
79 |
65 |
82 % |
184 |
152 |
83 % |
Table 2: Number of detainees leaving
this facility over the last decade
Exit trends are also summarized by fiscal year in Table 2.
Year-by-year figures for the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) are given for the total number of detainees as
compared with those leaving ICE detention from the facility.
The percent of detainees that left ICE detention is also given.
(As mentioned above, the remaining detainees were transferred to another ICE detention facility.)
Because data for all twelve months of the most recent fiscal year are not yet available, the
FY 2008 numbers (October 2007 through September 2008) are estimated based upon reporting for the first six months.
Were Detained Individuals from the Local Area?
Information on the place of arrest was not included in the available data ICE released.
However, we can examine whether the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) was the first ICE facility in which
these detainees were held.
According to ICE records, for the vast majority (78 percent) of these detainees, the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile)
was the first place they were sent when they were detained by ICE.
The remaining 22 percent had been
transferred in from another ICE detention facility.
We can also look at how quickly they arrived at this facility after they were first detained.
Again, a total of 78 percent arrived at the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) at some point
during the very first day they were detained by ICE.
There was considerable variability among detainees in the number of detention facilities
they had been held in before they were finally deported or released from this facility.
The number of facilities ranged as high as 10 separate locations for some detainees.
These figures again are based on an analysis of the most recent 12 months for which data are available.
For the United States as a whole, last year the typical detainee stayed in two
different ICE detention facilities before being deported or released - half stayed
in 2 or fewer facilities, and half stayed in 2 or more.
The average number of ICE facilities detainees moved through was 1.9.
Detainees at the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) on average had stayed at somewhat fewer (1.3) ICE facilities.
81 |
61 % |
5 % |
48 |
36 % |
72 % |
3 |
2 % |
10 % |
0 |
. |
8 % |
0 |
. |
0 % |
0 |
. |
0 % |
0 |
. |
0 % |
0 |
. |
2 % |
0 |
. |
3 % |
0 |
. |
1 % |
132 |
100 % |
100 % |
Table 3: Reasons individuals left ICE detention during the last 12 months
Why Did Detainees Leave ICE Detention?
ICE records one of twenty-three reasons a detainee left ICE detention.
As shown in Table 3, these reasons fall into ten general categories -- from leaving because
one is deported or removed, to leaving because one escaped or the individual died while in custody.
Deportation.
As mentioned earlier, while nationally the most common reason that a detainee left
ICE detention was that they were deported from this country, this was not the top
reason at this facility.
At the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) only 48 individuals (36 percent) were deported or removed during the most recent 12 month period for which data are available.
(ICE data did not distinguish between deportations and removals, and the terms are used interchangeably in this report.)
Orders.
The issuance of an order to release the detainee was the most common reason why individuals were
recorded as leaving ICE detention from this facility.
Under an "order of recognizance" an individual is released with reporting conditions while in deportation proceedings and
awaiting a final decision.
A second type of order ("order of supervision") releases an individual after a final order of removal.
Here an individual is released because ICE has not met the time limits the law imposes for deporting the individual.
There were 81 (61 percent) who left the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) detention for these reasons: 81 with orders
of recognizance, and none with an order of supervision.
Voluntary departure.
Under some circumstances, detainees are allowed to take "voluntary departure."
As with deportation, under voluntary departure a person must leave the country.
However, unlike formal deportation where the individual is barred by law from reentering this country permanently
or for a period of years, under voluntary departure the individual is not legally barred from reentry.
An additional 3 detainees (2 percent) left the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) last year as voluntary departures.
Escape and death. Nationally, there were 92 individuals who escaped ICE detention during the latest 12 month period for
which data are available, and 8 individuals were recorded as having died in detention.
No one was recorded by the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) as either escaping or dying last year.
Over the past decade, there was also no record of anyone who died or escaped from this facility.
As shown in Table 3, no one was recorded as leaving the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) during the past 12 months for the following
reasons:
Bonded out, Paroled, Proceedings Terminated, U.S. Marshal or other agency and Withdrawal. See "Reasons for Leaving ICE Detention" for a description of these categories.
Figure 2: Reasons individuals left ICE detention
Comparing Release Reasons Against The National Picture
In many respects release reasons for the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) departed from the national picture.
It was the case that a lower proportion left because they were deported from
this facility (36 percent) than was true for the U.S. as a whole (72 percent).
A lower proportion (2 percent) left this facility as voluntary departures than
was true nationally (10 percent).
In addition, differences were seen for detainees released on orders of recognizance or supervision (61
versus 5 percent), and individuals released on bond (none versus 8 percent).
The facility's percentages fell within 3 percentage points of the national figures for all other categories.
Nationalities
Which nationalities predominate? Last year in the United States, individuals from Mexico comprised the largest number
of those leaving ICE detention. Some 53.6 percent of all detainees recorded Mexico as their country of origin.
The Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) had a much smaller proportion of detainees from Mexico - 1 percent among their exits.
Detainees from Mexico were not the largest single nationality group among those leaving detention from the facility.
132 |
51 |
38.6 % |
48 |
25 |
52.0 % |
44 |
21 |
47.7 % |
27 |
3 |
11.1 % |
7 |
0 |
0.0 % |
3 |
0 |
0.0 % |
1 |
1 |
100.0 % |
1 |
1 |
100.0 % |
1 |
0 |
0.0 % |
Table 4: Numbers leaving ICE detention by nationality
during the last 12 months
In descending order,
the top nationalities that made up those leaving ICE detention from the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) last year were:
Honduras (36%)
, Guatemala (33%), El Salvador (20%), Ecuador (5%) and Nicaragua (2%).
This compared to the United States as a whole where the other top five nationalities after
Mexico were Honduras (11.0%), Guatemala (10.0%), El Salvador (8.4%) and Dominican Republic (1.6%).
Figure 3: Nationality of those
leaving ICE detention
For the frequency for each of the other nationalities among those leaving ICE detention from the Southwest Key Progam (Juvenile) last year see Table 4.
Deportations and voluntary departures by nationality.
Within the nationalities that made up those listed in Table 4 with more than one individual, the
proportion deported or voluntarily departing
varied from 0 percent to 52 percent.
As mentioned above, this compares with 39 percent for all detainees.
With the highest rate of 52 percent were detainees from Honduras where 48 individuals were deported or took voluntary departure.
More than one country was tied with the lowest rate, where detainees were deported or took voluntary departure.