Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse: “Timely Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) data about the custody history of detainees who were deported or released by the government during November and December of 2012 shows wide variation in their detention times. For four out of every ten, custody ended very quickly — within three days. And for more than two thirds (70 percent), ICE custody ended during the first month. Understandably, for those detainees who did not contest their deportations, detention typically ended quickly for the simple reason that these individuals were no longer in the country. Perversely, individuals who were legally entitled to remain in the United States typically experienced the longest detention times, sometimes stretching on for years before they won their cases and were released. There was considerable state-by-state variation in the detainee processing times. Nearly three-quarters (71%) of those picked up in California spent three days or less in lockup, compared to only three percent who were detained for three days or less in Alabama or South Carolina.  Read TRAC’s full report on detention times.”