Know Your Rights with Immigration Bounty Hunters

Bounty hunters are people who work with law enforcement to help find people. They are not law enforcement agents themselves. Usually, bounty hunters help find criminal defendants who posted bail but did not go to their court hearing. 

In Minnesota, bounty hunters are called “fugitive recovery agents.” Bounty hunters do not have to be licensed in Minnesota.

Yes. ICE is an agency of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). DHS started paying private companies that hire bounty hunters. They are hired to find, watch, and serve documents on people the federal government is looking for, including immigrants the government wants to deport. In some situations, a bounty hunter can also arrest or detain someone.

Bounty hunters may use digital tracking tools, including artificial intelligence, to find people for DHS.

Bounty hunters can only arrest or detain people if the bounty hunter is the “surety on a bond.” Being surety on a bond means that the bounty hunter’s company signed an agreement guaranteeing you would do something. Usually that is a guarantee you will show up for court.

No. Bounty hunters in Minnesota do not need to show their ID or prove who hired them. In fact, bounty hunters are even allowed to disguise their identities or misrepresent themselves.

Bounty hunters are not law enforcement. They have to follow the same laws as everyone else. That means they cannot kidnap, assault, or be violent against someone. They have to have a license to carry firearms, cannot recklessly fire their weapons, and have to follow all traffic rules. 

They are only allowed to arrest people who did not go to their court hearing. 

You can report constitutional violations by bounty hunters to:

• Minnesota Attorney General using the Federal Action Reporting Form. 
• ACLU of Minnesota: Report unlawful conduct by Federal Agents to ACLU-MN (available in English, Spanish, Somali, and Hmong).
   

You can also hire a lawyer who specializes in civil rights. They can help you decide if there are other legal actions you can take. To get help finding a lawyer, contact the Minnesota Lawyer Referral and Information Service.

It might be hard to know if someone is a bounty hunter. Bounty hunters are allowed to disguise their identities and do not need to identify themselves. There is no official registration or licensing process. Because of this, there is no easy way to know if they are "legitimate" bounty hunters.

Bounty hunters may be in plain clothes or in more tactical gear. Some bounty hunters wear tactical vests that say “Fugitive Recovery Agent,” “ICE,” and/or “Bail Agent.” Others may wear plain clothes or even a disguise. There have been reports of bounty hunters using vans, cars, and trucks with fake decals.

Be careful what information you share with people you do not know. Because it is hard to know if someone is a bounty hunter, you could be sharing sensitive information with them without knowing it.

Some neighborhood organizations have people you can text or call if you think you saw a bounty hunter.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation has a Surveillance Self Defense Guide to teach you how to keep your keep your information safer.