U.S. Government Unlawfully Detaining and Deporting U.S. Citizens as Aliens

This Article presents original research on the rate at which Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is detaining and deporting U.S. citizens, even though ICE has no jurisdiction over U.S. citizens. The article provides legal, historical, constitutional, and public policy analyses of these actions, and presents several case studies. The penultimate section evaluates, through a historical analysis of family law, the jurisprudence of recent Ninth Circuit decisions on acquired U.S. citizenship claims. The conclusion offers recommendations for changes in policy and procedures to end the unlawful practice of deporting and detaining U.S. citizens.