This Note offers a novel approach to bringing suit against the executor of the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Intensive Supervision Appearance Program (ISAP), Behavioral Interventions, Incorporated (BI). BI is contracted by DHS to run ISAP, the government’s only alternative to detention for newly arrived immigrants. ISAP involves shackling newly arrived immigrants with GPS devices and conducting around-the-clock surveillance with the SmartLINK phone application. Though presented as a “reasonable” alternative to physical detention, the program seriously harms immigrants by causing physical and mental damage, violating their privacy, over-surveilling the population, and weaponizing the collected data against the wider immigrant community.
Breaking BI: Using the False Claims Act to End the Intensive Supervision Appearance Program
By Anthony J. Mejia
Previous litigation efforts have failed to successfully challenge ISAP. This Note provides a novel roadmap for bringing action against the company responsible through the False Claims Act (FCA) by alleging that BI has broken its contract with the U.S. government. Analyzing prior litigation against BI can reveal potential contractual breaches, creating a path for FCA plaintiffs to prevail where constitutional claims have failed. This Note exposes distinct areas where a false claim is likely to be found: product deficiency claims around faulty GPS devices, questionable data collection and retention practices, and failure to provide contractually obligated case management services. Successful claims would result in remedies of up to billions of dollars that would incapacitate BI and jeopardize the continued existence of ISAP. Successful FCA litigation, when paired with growing social and political pressures against ISAP, could end the program.