Civil rights attorneys are suing the federal government, claiming immigrant detainees' constitutional
rights were violated when they were shackled during immigration court proceedings in San Francisco.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California, the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area, and Wilson, Sonsini, Goodrich & Rosati filed the class action suit
in federal court Monday against the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement.
The attorneys say thousands of immigration detainees even the elderly and people with physical or mental disabilities are routinely forced to wear wrist shackles, belly chains and leg irons during the civil proceedings, even if they do not pose a flight risk or other possible danger.
DHS did not immediately provide comment.
