The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops has urged the nation’s highest court to reject indefinite detention of noncitizens without judicial review. The bishops, joined by the Catholic Legal Immigration Network (CLINIC), filed an amicus brief in Genalo v. Keisy G.M., arguing that robust due process protections are essential to upholding human dignity and the common good.
The case centers on Keisy G.M., a permanent resident from the Dominican Republic who was held by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for 21 months. Although he appeared before a judge, Mr. G.M. did not receive a bond hearing during his confinement. He faced deportation following a conviction for felonious assault, though his status as a lawful permanent resident complicated the proceedings.
New York state eventually pardoned Mr. G.M., which ended the immediate threat of his removal. His legal team, including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), argues that ICE violated his Fifth Amendment right to due process by denying him a meaningful opportunity to challenge his detention.
Constitutional and Moral Arguments
In their filing, the bishops contended that executive detention has never been entirely insulated from judicial scrutiny. They emphasized that holding individuals indefinitely without individualized review by a neutral tribunal conflicts with the constitutional system of ordered liberty.
“Indefinite confinement without individualized review by a neutral tribunal is anathema to our constitutional system and the ordered liberty it enshrines,” the bishops stated in the brief, as first reported by the EWTN News.
The legal team also highlighted the practical harms of prolonged detention. “Prolonged detention can cost people their jobs, homes, health, and the ability to participate meaningfully in their own legal proceedings,” the document noted. Detainees in similar cases have been housed at federal immigration centers, such as Delaney Hall in Newark, New Jersey.
Catholic Teaching on Justice
The brief draws on established Catholic social teaching to support its constitutional arguments. The bishops cited Pope John XXIII’s 1963 encyclical Pacem in Terris, which calls for the safeguarding of personal rights and duties within a just legal framework.
They also referenced statements from Archbishop Paul Gallagher, the Holy See’s secretary for relations with states. During the 80th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Archbishop Gallagher emphasized the principles of equality before the law and the necessity of due process for all persons, regardless of immigration status.
The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments in Genalo v. Keisy G.M. on October 13. The outcome could set a significant precedent for how federal courts handle detention cases involving lawful permanent residents and other noncitizens facing removal proceedings.