The immigration detention system has come to mirror the country's prison system—bloated, underfunded, and often brutal. But it is in some ways even more arbitrary, as it handles people whose non-citizen status leaves them especially vulnerable to mistreatment. According to the ACLU's complaint:

On any given day—DHS detains more than one thousand noncitizens in jails across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, particularly in the Middle District of Pennsylvania.... many are lawful permanent residents who are detained for months, if not years, while the immigration courts and federal courts resolve their cases. Yet they never receive a custody hearing to determine whether their prolonged detention is even necessary. Indeed, many choose to abandon their meritorious cases because they cannot endure the prospect of being locked up indefinitely.

It makes sense that even people who shouldn't be deported might simply choose to leave the country, when the alternative is a de facto prison term that lasts essentially as long as the government wants. The system in effect pressures people forgo their own rights because they can't bear the treatment they must endure in order to seek justice.

Grenade isn't asking for much:

If released, Mr. Grenade intends to join his mother and children in Danville, Virginia and help support his family. He has no violent criminal history, strong family ties, and a colorable claim to relief that gives him a strong incentive to appear for his removal proceedings. Moreover, he has agreed to submit to supervision during the pendency of his case, including electronic monitoring if necessary.

Alli and Grenada might fall within a class of immigrants that some would categorize as “undesirable.” They've been convicted of actual crimes, albeit nonviolent ones, rather than just civil immigration violations. But they are also active members of their communities, who have already done their time in the regular criminal justice system, and just want to return to their families. And although they've built credible legal cases for remaining in the country, their lawsuit is not about escaping deportation. All they're asking for is a chance to argue before a court that they shouldn't be imprisoned indefinitely while they wait for the wheels of justice to turn.

Image: Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia (Kate Brumback / AP)