National Public Radio recently revealed a mandate that Congress has made to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. This mandate is known as the "detention bed mandate" and effectively requires the ICE to fill at least 34,000 beds in detention centers across the United States with immigrant offenders who are awaiting deportation trials.

Originally, detention centers were supposed to be reserved for violent offenders who are also illegal immigrants awaiting deportation. Yet studies reveal that almost two-thirds of the detainees at some locations are non-violent offenders or have no criminal record at all. One individual says that he was in a facility in Arizona for three weeks because he made a wrong turn when heading home and was apprehended by police.

Reports show that people can stay behind razor-wire fenders for days, weeks or years. The detention bed mandate began in 2009, and is a part of a massive increase in enforcement-only immigration policies that have taken place over the past 20 years. According to NPR research, the last time that Congress passed an immigration law dealing with something other than enforcement that was widespread was in 1986.

Supporters of the mandate say that it helps keep the ICE accountable to enforce immigration laws. The mandate ensures deportations, advocates say, Still, NPR raises concern that the detention mandate makes it possible to arrest nonviolent or even noncriminal immigrants. One detainee says that he would have gotten a visa if he was capable of doing so, but it is extremely difficult for immigrants from his particular city to get a visa. Immigrants' rights activists believe that local police departments are arresting more and more immigrants even though they have not committed any serious crime.

Many of the immigrants who are taken to deportation trials petition to stay in the U.S. legally at their trial. In most cases, their request is denied and they are sent back to their homeland. The Centers for Immigration Studies says that the detention bed mandate may be helpful. According to this think tank, the only way to determine whether or not people actually leave is to keep them under lock and key.

Detention is necessary because of the high risk that people are simply going to flee or skip out on their hearings, researchers say. Many individuals skip out on their hearings if released and relocate to a new location where they try to avoid authorities. The ICE says that the detention mandate is resource intensive, but necessary. Some say that detention centers are the surest way to hold immigrants, but others argue that mandating so many immigrants to remain in centers each night may be overwhelming.

Some government officials are looking at other ways to monitor detainees. Some options include GPS-monitored ankle bracelets and routine check-ins with the ICE. Those alternatives can cost significantly, but they have not yet been implanted. The immigration bill passed by the Senate this year called for increased use of detention alternatives, but the House has not passed an immigration overhaul as of yet.

If you have been placed in a detention center due to illegal immigration, then you may want to talk with an attorney at a local immigration firm today. You will need assistance as you seek defense and work through your case or request legal permission to remain in the United States. You have every right to hire an attorney and argue for justice in your case today. Use this directory to locate an immigration lawyer that is near you and is capable of helping you with your case.