The road
Twelve steps after the person is found. This is not your plan — it is a map of the process: we show every step that exists. Seven are open, the rest are in the works.
01Found · where he isThe facility, the state, the circuit. From here everything becomes concrete.
02Staying in touchThe phone account, letters and postcards, books. Why you cannot call in.
03VisitingHours, how to sign up, documents, what cannot be brought in.
04AttorneyFree, accredited representative, paid. You can search by language.
Rates, phases, the retainer, what belongs in the agreement.
IN THE WORKSA queue of tasks, one at a time. Phone photos — a clean PDF for the attorney.
Which mechanisms exist and what works now. The first question for the attorney.
IN THE WORKSThe path release is most often won through now. An attorney prepares and files it.
Check-ins, electronic monitoring, change of address. The case continues.
IN THE WORKSThe master calendar hearing and how it differs from the merits hearing.
IN THE WORKSReminders 14, 3, and 1 day ahead. Form EOIR-33 after a move.
The case runs for months and years. What to keep accumulating all that time.
IN THE WORKSParallel tracks
Children
School, medical consent, what to tell the child. In the works.
Family money
Rent, missed wages, the conversation with the employer. In the works.
He was transferred
A transfer resets the attorney and the phone money. What to redo. In the works.
Health
Medications, chronic conditions, access to medical information. In the works.
The median length of a detention is 25 days (completed cases, 2024–2026).
About 75% of these detentions ended in removal. The rest were released in various ways or transferred to another facility.
This is an aggregate from past data (Deportation Data Project), not a prediction for a specific person.
Unfinished steps are honestly marked "in the works". Seeing the scale of the whole road is useful in itself: the case does not end at release.
Information updated July 28, 2026. Rules change — check the date.
We are not attorneys and we do not give legal advice. This page has facts and links to official sources only.