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Reports of unsanitary conditions inside immigration deportation facilities have been a regular occurrence over the years, and may continue to grow as more and more facilities are being built to house immigrants awaiting deportation. While prison operators and the government have continued to promise improvements and ensure safety in these facilities, new problems continue to come out. In a recent report by the Guatemala Acupuncture and Medical Aid Project, immigrant families report alleged human rights violations during short term detention here in Southern Arizona.

With one day left until the elections, politicians continue to predict the future while taking heat for inaction. The elections could spell out the direction of future immigration reform, as both sides prepare for a possible Republican Senate takeover. Former presidential candidates chime in on what the future may hold, while the current president continues to take public hits from immigrant rights’ advocates for what they see as inaction.

As the timeline for executive action put forth by President Barack Obama nears, he faces pressure from both sides on how to proceed. Immigration advocates are warning the president that Democrats cannot take the Latino vote for granted, and should not further delay any action. On the other hand, Republican are warning the president to wait, and not act without Congress to pass immigration reform.

Speculation continues as to if and when President Obama will issue an executive order to implement immigration changes. There are no signs that Congress will take action anytime soon, before or after the upcoming November elections. The president has said that if Congress refuses to act, he will take action sometime after next month’s elections. Janet Napolitano has voiced her opinion, that an executive order is appropriate under these circumstances.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has announced they will begin construction on the largest immigration detention facility to date near Dilley, in southern Texas. The facility, previously part of a community used to house oilfield workers, will be transformed into a detention center which will eventually accommodate up to 2,400 people. The facility has been contracted by the government to be operated by none other than the town of Eloy, Arizona.

Arizona is considered to have some of the harshest anti-immigration laws in the country. State Ballot 1070 became a lightning rod for controversy, and immediately faced constitutional challenges, striking down many parts of the law. Now, another anti-immigration law has been struck down by the federal courts, the law which denied bail to illegal immigrants.

A grant from the State of Arizona has provided for police officers to be placed in Tucson schools. However, the program is at risk of being eliminated because of the state’s ever-controversial SB 1070, which would require officers to ask students about their immigration status. City leaders are now weighing the benefits of law enforcement against the potential risks to their students.

For some time now, ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) has claimed that both it and CBP (Customs Border Protection) are focused on deportation and removal proceedings of immigrants who are violent criminals or who pose a threat to national security. However, many argue that this is not the case and too many non-violent immigrants are being deported each year.

In a further example of the growing friction between local law enforcement and federal immigration officials, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has reported that local officials denied 8,800 federal immigration hold requests this year. As more local law enforcement have fought against enforcing federal immigration policy, that number will likely continue to grow.

With the November elections only weeks away, many people have given up on expecting any kind of immigration reform from either Congress or the president. However, others are putting their names to paper by signing a petition asking President Obama to reveal his plans for immigration changes. While it is doubtful that these petitions will change the president’s plans in this short time before the elections, it highlights the growing demand for immigration reform action.

The issue of immigration has continued to dominate the headlines here in Arizona and across the United States. However, immigration debate and reform is not just a regional issue, but is a relevant topic across the world. As people move across borders escaping violence, and seeking better economic opportunities, anti-immigration advocates and politicians continue to sound the anti-immigrant alarm.

We have reported on a number of complaints alleging terrible conditions in the nation’s immigration detention centers. But now, a complaint filed by an immigrant advocacy group has alleged guards and staff have been sexually abusing women at the Texas family detention center.

There has been a history of problems in the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention centers. Arizona is home to two such ICE detention centers, one in Florence and the other in Eloy. Unfortunately, Arizona also had a part in the dark history of housing other immigrants, and even American citizens in detention centers nearly 70 years ago. During World War II, Arizona was home to internment camps holding thousands of people of Japanese descent for years.

In a prior blog post, we noted the difficulty many lawyers faced in getting access to immigrant detainees. It appears that access may be improving, just in time for groups of pro bono attorneys to take up the cases for many of the recently arrived immigrants. The Obama administration is even providing millions of dollars to provide the unaccompanied immigrant children with representation.

The Border Patrol has been criticized for shooting unarmed individuals on both sides of the border. The high profile case of the 16-year-old boy shot 10 times through the fence into Nogales, Mexico, has still not moved forward after two years. Now a recent investigation has found that the Border Patrol has not disciplined any of its officers in deadly force investigations in a decade.

The election for Arizona’s 2nd Congressional District is heating up as Democratic Representative Ron Barber faced Republican challenger Martha McSally for their first debate. Along with the issue of gun control, immigration was a hot point of contention between the two. Between conservatives who want stricter border control, and Democrats frustrated with inaction with comprehensive reform, the immigration issue may be the deciding factor in next months elections.

While millions apply and wait years for permanent residency, the EB-5 program allows for investors and their family to become eligible for green cards in as little as a few months. The catch? Foreign investors must invest at least $500,000 in US development projects. As a result in the surge in Chinese investor applications, the US has maxed out the EB-5 visas for the first time in 24 years.

For a long time, portions of a fence were the only technology marking the border through thousands of miles of the southwest of the United States. However, with recent advances, the US-Mexico border is becoming a high tech testing ground. With body cameras and surveillance balloons, the border patrol states the technology will help in securing the borders, but will these changes have any real effects on the ground?

Immigrant workers are often exploited in the workplace. Workers are paid less than minimum wage, work in substandard conditions, and sometimes are paid nothing at all. Undocumented workers particularly are at risk of mistreatment because reporting the incidents may subject them to scrutiny regarding their legal status. Even here in Tucson, Arizona, immigrant workers have reported exploitation in the workplace.

It has been over four years since Governor Jan Brewer signed Arizona’s SB 1070 into law. The controversial bill, in part, requires officers to check a person’s immigration status during law enforcement stops. Legal challenges came immediately, leading all the way up to the Supreme Court, who upheld the most controversial provision of the bill. However, a new lawsuit challenges the constitutionality of how the police enforce the law.

The debate on immigration reform has gone nowhere in recent years. Democrats blame Republicans, and Republicans blame Democrats. With no progress in sight, the President promised executive action on immigration, but even that promise stalled when it became a divisive political issue. So who gets credit for at least representing the interests of their supporters when it comes to immigration? A new study finds that neither party is being well represented in the immigration debate.

The Board of Immigration Appeals found that women who are victims of domestic violence in their home countries, can seek asylum in the United States. This landmark decision finally resolved the issue of whether this type of abuse could make the women eligible as victims of persecution for the purposes of asylum.

The deserts around the US-Mexico border can be a harsh and deadly environment, especially for those who make the crossing on foot. Even as recent numbers have indicated a surge in illegal immigrants coming into the US, primarily from Central America, immigrant deaths are on the decline.

Many people in the immigrant community look to notaries for assistance in immigration matters. But notaries are not lawyers. This can be the source of confusion for many immigrants, and lead to problems down the road including loss of legal status and deportation.

Changes in the federal immigration policy do not appear to be on the horizon anytime soon. Congress has not enacted comprehensive immigration reform. President Barack Obama, has continued to delay any executive action, much to the disappointment of many immigrants and rights advocates. However, frustrated by the inaction, immigration changes are taking place at the state and local levels.