DOJ Panel Makes Clear: Illegal Aliens Are Subject to Mandatory DetentionThe Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Board of Immigration Appeals, the nation’s top panel for interpreting federal immigration law, is making clear that illegal aliens living in the United States are subject to mandatory detention, as required by the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). Late last week, the Board of Immigration Appeals made the sweeping clarification as part of a ruling in a case involving an illegal alien from Venezuela who made an appeal to the board after he was denied a bond hearing by a federal immigration judge. In its review of the matter, the Board of Immigration Appeals made clear that illegal aliens living in the United States are subject to mandatory detention and therefore ineligible for a bond hearing before a federal immigration judge. [Emphasis added]Aliens, like the respondent, who surreptitiously cross into the United States remain applicants for admission until and unless they are lawfully inspected and admitted by an immigration officer. Remaining in the United States for a lengthy period of time following entry without inspection, by itself, does not constitute an “admission.” Likewise, being arrested pursuant to a warrant and placed into removal proceedings does not constitute an admission.