520
Opinion of the Court
dissent disputes that statistic, post, at 562-564 (opinion of Souter, J.), but goes on to praise a subsequent study conducted by the Vera Institute of Justice that more than confirms it. Post, at 565-566. As the dissent explains, the Vera study found that "77% of those [deportable criminal aliens] released on bond" showed up for their removal proceedings. Post, at 565. This finding—that one out of four criminal aliens released on bond absconded prior to the completion of his removal proceedings—is even more striking than the one-in-five flight rate reflected in the evidence before Congress when it adopted § 1226(c).5 The Vera Institute study strongly supports Congress' concern that, even with individualized screening, releasing deportable criminal aliens on bond would lead to an unacceptable rate of flight.
Congress amended the immigration laws several times toward the end of the 1980's. In 1988, Congress limited
Brief for Petitioners 19 (noting that, for aliens not evaluated for flight risk at a bond hearing, the prehearing skip rate doubled to 40%).
5 The dissent also claims that the study demonstrated that "92% of criminal aliens . . . who were released under supervisory conditions attended all of their hearings." Post, at 565 (opinion of Souter, J.). The study did manage to raise the appearance rate for criminal aliens through a supervision program known as the Appearance Assistance Program (AAP). But the AAP study is of limited value. First, the study included only 16 aliens who, like respondent, were released from prison and charged with being deportable on the basis of an aggravated felony. 1 Vera Institute of Justice, Testing Community Supervision for the INS: An Evaluation of the Appearance Assistance Program, pp. 33-34, 36 (Aug. 1, 2000). In addition, all 127 aliens in the AAP study were admitted into the study group only after being screened for "strength of family and community ties, appearance rates in prior legal proceedings, and eligibility to apply for a legal remedy." Id., at 13; see also id., at 37. Following this selection process, "supervision staff were in frequent, ongoing communication with participants," id., at 14, through, among other things, required reporting sessions, periodic home visits, and assistance in retaining legal representation, id., at 41-42. And, in any event, respondent seeks an individualized bond hearing, not "community supervision." The dissent's claim that criminal aliens released under supervisory conditions are likely to attend their hearings, post, at 565, therefore, is totally beside the point.
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