Vera Institute of Justice
@vera.org
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We’re fighting to secure equal justice for all, end mass incarceration, and strengthen families + communities
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Ending the incarceration of girls and gender expansive youth isn't just possible, it's essential.

Vera's new report includes tools to help leaders, policymakers, and advocates build a future where every young person can thrive. https://www.vera.org/ending-girls-incarceration-how-to
Strategies and Insights to End Girls’ Incarceration: Lessons from the…
Vera works closely with government and civic leaders to urgently build and improve justice systems that ensure fairness, promote safety, and strengthen…
www.vera.org
vera.org
The Trump administration’s expansion of deportation efforts affects us all. Relying on federal and local law enforcement agencies to address immigration enforcement compromises public safety and pulls personnel away from responding to violent crimes.

www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
Trump's deportation machine has diverted some 42,000 crime fighters from other tasks
Feeling safer now?
www.motherjones.com
vera.org
The immigration detention system is a multi-billion-dollar network operating with little oversight or accountability. And that’s because ICE only shares limited & error-prone statistics with the public concealing the truth: immigration detention terrorizes communities and is completely unnecessary.
vera.org
As of June, ICE detained people...

➡️ In 436 facilities but only acknowledged using 163 on its own website

➡️ Across all fifty states, Guantanamo Bay, and the U.S. territories of Puerto Rico and the Northern Mariana Islands

www.vera.org/ice-detentio...
ICE Detention Trends | Vera Institute of Justice
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Since the start of President Trump’s second term:

➡️ The number of people in detention has increased dramatically, reaching an unprecedented high of more than 59,000 people

➡️ His administration revived and plans to expand the practice of detaining families with children
www.washingtonpost.com
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ICE’s massive, nation-spanning network of detention centers includes mega-prisons, private prisons, local jails, and even hotels, hospitals, airports, and military bases. In these facilities, people detained have reported violence, overcrowding, starvation, and medical neglect.
vera.org
🚨ICE is not sharing critical information with the public on the true scale and human cost of Trump’s immigration agenda. But Vera is. Our ICE Detention Trends dashboard provides you with the best glimpse into ICE’s vast detention system.

🧵A thread...

www.vera.org/news/more-pe...
More People Are in Immigration Detention Than Ever Before
Vera’s research reveals what ICE is not sharing with the public and the vast scale and human cost of Trump’s immigration agenda.
www.vera.org
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In a time when the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda continues to tear families apart, traffic reform is sorely needed. We must uphold the dignity of all communities and end discriminatory practices that put marginalized groups at increased risk.
vera.org
Research shows that a small percentage of stops actually yield an arrest for contraband.

Law enforcement is spending time and resources on encounters that rarely improve public safety while exposing people to harm.
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Historically, minor transportation offenses have disproportionately affected Black, brown, and immigrant communities. These discriminatory stops can turn into major, life-changing experiences like an arrest or even deportation. medium.com/vision-zero-...
In the Era of Mass Deportations, Traffic Reform is More Important Than Ever.
By Max Markham
medium.com
vera.org
The Trump administration quietly rolled out a new program last week that strips unaccompanied children of this right, denies them asylum cases, and potentially prevents them from living in safety, away from the dangers they fled.

www.politico.com/news/2025/10...
ICE pursuing self-deportation of unaccompanied minors
The policy, referred to as “Freaky Friday” by immigration advocates, is the latest ramp-up in Trump administration enforcement efforts.
www.politico.com
vera.org
Everyone within U.S. borders—regardless of age and immigration status—is entitled to due process when facing deportation.
vera.org
With the National Guard now deployed in Chicago and the Trump administration ignoring due process, local leaders must continue taking bold action and remain committed to protecting immigrant communities and their constitutional rights.
vera.org
Immigrants make up an important part #Chicago’s community. But, the city’s 1.7 million immigrants face imminent risk of deportation as ICE ramps up local operations, threatening their ability to stay rooted in their communities and families.

vera-institute.files.svdcdn.com/production/d...
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Earlier this week, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson signed an executive order banning ICE from using city property in their operations—a critical measure to ensure immigrants’ safety. thehill.com/homenews/sta...
thehill.com
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Good news: Indianapolis community members and city-county councilors successfully advocated to restore the city’s immigrant legal services fund. This critical win safeguards the city’s immigrant communities from unjust deportations and attacks on their due process rights.
Funding cut to Indy’s immigrant legal defense fund is reversed
Plus: Despite ICE concerns, the sheriff’s budget also passed out of committee.
mirrorindy.org
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"A fair chance at housing is a fair chance at a life."

Maryland's Fair Chance Access to Housing Act would increase housing access for formerly incarcerated people—creating safer communities and reducing recidivism.
Maryland must give everyone a fair chance at housing | GUEST COMMENTARY
Applicants for housing shouldn’t be pre-judged based on their criminal history, writes Antoine Lovell and Marquis Howard.
www.baltimoresun.com
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Our leaders must advance policies that promote family unity, a strong economy, and thriving immigrant communities. These protections are critically important as we brace for the unjust and unnecessary harm that will come from denying people bond and keeping them locked up.
vera.org
The systematic dismantling of due process under the Trump administration is on full display:

❗Pressuring immigrants to self-deport
❗Holding them indefinitely in poor conditions
❗Blocking millions from accessing bond
❗Denying immigrants facing deportation a fair hearing
vera.org
For decades, judges granted bonds to detained immigrants deemed neither flight risks nor public safety threats and allowed them to live in their communities while awaiting lengthy court proceedings. That all vanished in July when ICE reinterpreted immigration law. www.nytimes.com/2025/09/24/u...
Under Trump Policy, Bonds for Immigrants Facing Deportation Are Vanishing
www.nytimes.com
Reposted by Vera Institute of Justice
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Trump is using crime as a pretext to threaten cities like Washington, DC and justify a power grab.

Our elected leaders need to call out this ruse and go on the offense about what actually works to make our cities safe—and it’s not sending in the military.
Sending in the National Guard Won’t Make Our Cities Safer
The federal government has a role to play in public safety, but a military takeover isn’t it.
www.vera.org
vera.org
MCIU’s effectiveness at providing alternative first response shows underscore the importance of prioritizing care and collaboration.
vera.org
Since 2023, MCIU has:

➡️ Operated 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, every day of the year

➡️ Responded to 2,448 calls in year one

➡️ Resolved nearly 65% of all calls by providing compassionate and immediate care