If you choose to remain silent, the agent will likely ask you questions for longer, but your silence alone is not enough to support probable cause or reasonable suspicion to arrest, detain, or search you or your belongings.Ī limited exception does exist: for people who do have permission to be in the U.S. You may simply say that you do not wish to answer those questions. You do not have to answer questions about your immigration status. You have the right to remain silent or tell the agent that you’ll only answer questions in the presence of an attorney, no matter your citizenship or immigration status.These apply to every situation, outside of customs and ports of entry. We will examine specific scenarios where one might encounter CBP in more depth, but here are your key rights. And, depending on where you are in this area and how long an agent detains you, agents must have varying levels of suspicion to hold you. Furthermore, as a general matter, these agents’ jurisdiction extends only to immigration violations and federal crimes. Constitution protects against arbitrary searches and seizures of people and their property, even in this expanded border area.
Some states, like Florida, lie entirely within this border band so their entire populations are impacted.Īre there limitations to immigration officials’ power? Most of the 10 largest cities in the U.S., such as New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago, fall in this region. population, or about 200 million people, reside within this expanded border region, according to the 2010 census. So, combining this federal regulation and the federal law regarding warrantless vehicle searches, CBP claims authority to board a bus or train without a warrant anywhere within this 100-mile zone. The federal government defines a “reasonable distance” as 100 air miles from any external boundary of the U.S. A federal law says that, without a warrant, CBP can board vehicles and vessels and search for people without immigration documentation “within a reasonable distance from any external boundary of the United States.” These “external boundaries” include international land borders but also the entire U.S. border and areas that function like a border, claims a territorial reach much larger than you might imagine. Customs and Border Protection, the federal agency tasked with patrolling the U.S. This helps you understand your rights within the 100-mile border zone.Īre immigration officials allowed to stop people in places wholly inside the U.S.? border, important Fourth Amendment protections still apply. Although the federal government claims the power to conduct certain kinds of warrantless stops within 100 miles of the U.S. Constitution protects people from random and arbitrary stops and searches. This content is intended to serve as general information it is not legal advice nor intended as legal advice.
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