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ICE & Immigrants: What are the laws?

ICE officers get something called an administrative warrant. Experts say it's not signed by a judge and limits an ICE officer's authority.

MINNEAPOLIS — A Facebook post of an arrest by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in south Minneapolis this week has prompted a lot of questions about how ICE operates and what immigrants' rights are if they're detained. 

Here are a few answers:

1. The arrest: Experts say in certain cases, an ICE officer does not need a warrant. 

"Obviously, for instance, a border patrol officer who sees people climbing the fence and crossing over, they obviously don't need a warrant," explained Linus Chan, associate professor of clinical law at the University of Minnesota and Director of the Detainee Rights Clinic.

Chan says when ICE officers do need a warrant, it's a lot different than a warrant in the criminal court system. 

ICE officers get something called an administrative warrant. Chan says it's not signed by a judge and limits an ICE officer's authority.

"An administrative warrant does not give immigration officers the right to enter your home to make an arrest," he said, "That said, if they encounter you anywhere else outside your home, then it becomes a lot more fuzzy about what happens."

2. Right to an Attorney: When a person is taken into ICE custody they have the right to a lawyer. 

But unlike in criminal proceedings, the government doesn't provide one. 

"In the vast majority of these cases, people do not have lawyers when it comes to being represented in immigration proceedings throughout the country," Chan said. 

3. Constitutional Rights: An attorney with the ACLU of Minnesota says they want people to know that they are covered by the rights outline in the U.S. Constitution. 

"A lot of individuals don't know they have the rights and protections of the Constitution," said Ian Bratlie, a staff attorney with the ACLU of Minnesota. 

In Minnesota, ICE houses people detained at certain county jails. 

An ICE spokesperson says there are currently five jails they use for detainees in the following counties: Kandiyohi, Sherburne, Nobles, Freeborn and Carver.

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