ICE issued a detainer on my loved one — what do I do right now?

An ICE detainer (Form I-247A or I-247N) is a written request from Immigration and Customs Enforcement asking a local law-enforcement agency to hold a person for up to 48 hours after their scheduled release so ICE can take them into federal immigration custody. It is a request, not an order — and increasingly, jurisdictions in California decline to honor detainers under the California TRUST Act and VALUES Act. Arizona generally honors them.

The four actions in the first 24 hours

1. Identify where the person is held. Use ICE's online detainee locator with the person's A-number and country of birth, or call the local jail.
2. Document everything. Date and time of arrest, charge, agency, badge numbers, any statements made by the person to officers. This record matters for bond and for any later motion to suppress.
3. Do not sign anything. ICE will often present a Form I-407 (Record of Abandonment of Lawful Permanent Resident Status) to LPR detainees. Signing it abandons the green card. ICE may also present a stipulated removal order. Do not sign.
4. Gather the immigration record. Green card, prior immigration forms, work permits, tax returns, proof of residence in the U.S., proof of family ties. Bond hearings move fast and rely on this record.

What happens at the 48-hour mark

If the local jurisdiction honors the detainer, ICE picks up the person within 48 hours of the criminal release. They are then transported to an ICE detention facility (in this region, typically Adelanto, Mesa Verde, or El Paso Service Processing Center) and a Notice to Appear (NTA) is filed with the immigration court. The first hearing — a master calendar — is typically scheduled within 1–4 weeks.

Bond eligibility — the threshold question

Whether the person can be released on bond depends on which detention statute applies:

• INA § 236(a) — discretionary detention. The immigration judge has jurisdiction to set bond; the standard is flight risk and danger to the community.
• INA § 236(c) — mandatory detention. No bond is available if the person is detained on certain criminal grounds (most aggravated felonies, controlled-substance offenses, two CIMTs, etc.). The only path out is a Joseph hearing challenging whether mandatory detention actually applies.
• INA § 235(b) — arriving aliens. Limited bond eligibility; parole from DHS is the practical route.

How we handle this

Within 24 hours of being retained we (a) file Form G-28 with the detention facility so the officer knows counsel is engaged, (b) order the criminal court file to begin the categorical-approach analysis on every charge, (c) request the A-file and the bond memorandum from ICE, and (d) start building the equities packet — letters of support, proof of family ties, employment history, tax returns, community involvement, treatment records. The bond hearing is the first chance the family has to bring the loved one home. We treat it as the first hearing of the case, not as paperwork.