The bill provides an opportunity for the U.S. Congress to address the shameful state of the U.S. immigrant detention system and stop the human rights violations that have been revealed by the press in recent weeks.

The Secure and Safe Detention and Asylum Act, S. 3114, was reintroduced in the U.S. Senate today by Senators Joseph Lieberman (I-Conn.), Sam Brownback (R-Kansas), Edward M. Kennedy (D-Mass.), and Chuck Hagel (R-Nebraska).

According to a press release from the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, the Secure and Save Detention and Asylum Act would:

• Mandate improved detention conditions, including prompt medical care that complies with accreditation requirements, unobstructed access to legal counsel, limits on the use of solitary confinement and other punitive treatment, and special standards for families and for victims of persecution and torture
• Substantially enhance the rights of asylum seekers and others to have their detentions reviewed promptly by an immigration judge and to be considered for release if they pose no risk to public safety
• Enhance alternatives to detention such as supervised release programs
• Require the recording of interviews with detained asylum seekers and other quality assurance measures to ensure these individuals are not erroneously returned to countries where they fear persecution
• Establish an Office of Detention Oversight within the Department of Homeland Security to audit and investigate detention facilities' compliance with standards and to report to Congress
• Mandate the reporting and investigation of all deaths that occur in detention facilities

The National Immigrant Justice Center has joined with a broad coalition fo 54 faith-based, human rights, and community organizations in a letter of support for the bill.

NIJC's full statement on the bill is available here.

We'll be posting an action alert in support of the bill tomorrow.