People Released From Immigration Detention Sue ICE for Refusing to Return Their Property

CONTACT:
ACLU of D.C.: media@acludc.org
ACLU of IL: eyohnka@aclu-il.org
Democracy Defenders Fund: teresa@democracydefenders.org
Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP: mcoffey@willkie.com
Platkin LLP: PlatkinLLP@orchestraco.com

WASHINGTON – A Russian asylum seeker and six other people who were held in immigration detention and later released from custody have filed a class action lawsuit against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) over the agency’s routine failure to return personal property long after the owners exited ICE facilities.

Vladimir Izmailov, a plaintiff in the case from Russia who has a pending asylum claim, has been unable to get meaningful employment without his work authorization documents, which were seized when he was detained. ICE has not returned these documents – as well as other items, including Izmailov’s wedding band – for more than 5 months. Mr. Izmailov has been forced to borrow money to pay rent for himself, his wife, and their two children as a result. He cannot drive and cannot afford to pay to replace either his documents or his wedding band.

“ICE refusing to return my belongings has made a horrible experience even worse,” said Vladimir Izmailov. “ICE detained me in terrible conditions, without proper nutrition and medical care for months. Now, I’m struggling to provide for my family because ICE still has my documents that show I am authorized to work. ICE even still has my wedding ring, which holds great sentimental value for me and cannot be replaced.”

Mr. Izmailov’s story is, unfortunately, not an isolated incident but an example of what amounts to an ongoing policy. ICE routinely fails to return property seized from people it detains and then releases. The agency has withheld government-issued identification documents, like driver’s licenses and passports; evidence of immigration status; employment authorization documents; Social Security cards; cell phones, cash, and other items. Without identification, employment authorization, or immigration documents, plaintiffs have lost jobs, risked re-arrest when leaving their homes, and suffered significant hardship for their families.

The plaintiffs are represented by the American Civil Liberties Union of the District of Columbia (ACLU of D.C.); the ACLU of Illinois; Democracy Defenders Fund; Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP; and Platkin LLP.

The Constitution prohibits ICE from retaining property once its justification for holding it expires. In 2024, the federal appeals court in the District of Columbia ruled that the Fourth Amendment governed a similar practice by the Metropolitan Police Department, in a case litigated by the ACLU of D.C.

“The Fourth Amendment exists so that overzealous government agents cannot take and keep our property for no reason,” said Michael Perloff, senior staff attorney at the ACLU of D.C. “We cannot let ICE trample on this fundamental protection against abuse of power.”

The case, Gonzalez v. Department of Homeland Security, was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. The plaintiffs are asking the court to order ICE to return the items and to take the precautions necessary to ensure it returns property that it has no justification to retain.

“For nearly two years the Trump administration has unleashed federal officers to run roughshod over our neighbors and communities, and we have become quite familiar with their violent and dehumanizing tactics,” said Kevin Fee, legal director of the ACLU of Illinois. “This complaint shines a light on one important corner of the administration’s record of abuse – its agents are seizing people’s important property and simply failing to return it, even when people need it to fight for their rights or simply live their lives. This is not the way that government should act, and it evidences this administration’s callous disrespect for the communities it is supposed to represent and protect.”

"The Fourth Amendment’s protections against unreasonable seizures apply to all people in the United States, regardless of citizenship,” said Brian Ward, senior counsel at Democracy Defenders Fund. “No president or agency can strip away this fundamental right. DHS’ policy of separating people from their belongings and essential identity documents, leaving them without the property and documents they need to navigate their own lives, is cruel and unlawful, and has left many of our clients fearful to leave their homes."

“ICE does not get to release people from custody and then hold their freedom hostage by keeping the documents they need to live their lives,” said former Attorney General of New Jersey and partner at Platkin LLP, Matt Platkin. “Passports, work permits and birth certificates are not ICE’s to keep indefinitely. ICE is not above the law, and it must be held accountable when it exceeds its authority.”

“The legitimacy of government authority depends not only on the power it may exercise, but also on the fairness and humanity with which it exercises that power,” said Craig C. Martin, Chairman Americas at Willkie Farr & Gallagher. “Our immigration laws and procedures, national security and human dignity need not be in conflict. As enforced here, they are; once the government's need for property expires, it has a basic obligation to return it.”

A copy of the complaint filed in the case is available here.