NOLAN’S LATEST @ THE HILL – Sessions’s Next Move Might Well Be To “Gin Up” Harboring Prosecutions!

http://thehill.com/opinion/immigration/387533-harboring-undocumented-aliens-is-still-a-crime-expect-sessions-to

 

Family Pictures

Nolan writes:

I raised the possibility a year ago that Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel will face criminal charges for harboring undocumented aliens if he goes much further with his sanctuary policies.

Punishment for harboring ranges from a fine and/or up to a year in prison to life in prison or a death sentence.

It hasn’t happened…yet. But Attorney General Jeff Sessions has called for more harboring prosecutions and is not limiting the reach of the harboring provisions.

The Border Patrol arrested a member of the No More Deaths humanitarian group in the Arizona desert a few months ago and charged him with harboring for giving aliens who had made an illegal crossing food, water, and a place to sleep for three days.

Harboring prosecutions are still uncommon, but I expect this to change when Sessions realizes that the immigration court backlog crisis is making it impossible for him to enforce the immigration laws effectively.

He will have to find ways to make America a less desirable place for undocumented aliens to live. In other words, he will have to encourage “self-deportation.”

Harboring prosecutions can serve this purpose by making individuals, landlords, employers, humanitarian organizations, etc., afraid to become involved with undocumented aliens. Even church congregations would be vulnerable.

. . . .

Will harboring prosecutions be more successful than employer sanctions were?

Maybe not, but Sessions has to try something and harboring prosecutions might help.

To convict someone of harboring, the government must establish that the defendant concealed, harbored, or shielded an undocumented alien from detection. A conviction can result from committing any one of the three acts.

The harboring provisions provide the following penalties for each alien in respect to whom a violation occurs:

  1. If the offense did not involve commercial advantage or financial gain, a fine or imprisonment for up to 5 years, or both;
  2. If it was done for commercial advantage or financial gain, a fine or imprisonment for up to 10 years, or both;
  3. In the case of a violation during and in relation to which the offender causes serious bodily injury, or places in jeopardy the life of any person, a fine or imprisonment for up to 20 years, or both; and
  4. In the case of a violation resulting in the death of any person, a death sentence or imprisoned for any term of years or for life, a fine, or both.

The statute does not define “conceal,” “harbor,” or “shield from detection.” The federal courts have had to define these terms.

Conceal” generally has been taken to mean hiding or otherwise preventing the discovery of an undocumented alien.

Courts have interpreted “shielding” more expansively. Even the making of false statements or falsifying documents may constitute “shielding.”

According to the ACLU, “harboring” is defined differently in the various federal jurisdictions across the country.

The most frequent characteristic the courts have used to describe “harboring” is that it facilitates an immigrant’s remaining in the United States illegally, which encompasses an extremely wide range of activities.

This is certain to result in inconsistent verdicts. People are going to be incarcerated for conduct that wouldn’t have been considered a crime if it had been committed in a different judicial district.

While a large-scale, nationwide campaign of harboring prosecutions might make it harder for undocumented aliens to live in the United States, the cost will be too high if it fills our prisons with American citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents who were just trying to be good Samaritans.

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Get Nolan’s complete article over at The Hill at the link!

Yeah, I could see Sessions pursuing this. But, believe it or not, it’s been tried before and failed as a deterrent.

During the Reagan Administration, when I was the INS Deputy General Counsel, the Administration brought criminal cases against some of the leaders of the so-called “Sanctuary Movement” in Texas and Arizona.

Unlike undocumented migrants held in immigration detention, those charged with harboring are always vigorously represented by good defense lawyers. The trials are very time-consuming and labor intensive.

I remember once spending the better part of a week in South Texas waiting to be called as a Government witness in a sanctuary prosecution. Upon finally being reached on the witness list, all I got to state was my name and position before the U.S. District Judge sustained the defendants’ objection to my testimony and disqualified me as a witness.

Also, unlike prosecuting undocumented migrants in Immigration Court, 100% of the convictions are appealed, a process that also stretches out for many years. Even when the Government “wins” the case and a conviction is sustained, the sentence is almost always probation or something quite nominal.

In other words, this is a “strategy’ that will tie up lots of U.S. Attorney and Federal Judicial resources, create lots of ill feeling in the community, but provide no real deterrence.  Indeed, my recollection is that rather than deterring the “Sanctuary Movement,” these prosecutions actually inspired and motivated groups opposed to the Government’s policies on Central American migrants!

In fact, eventually there were enough demonstrated problems with the Regan/Bush I Administrations’ approach to Central American asylum seekers that the plaintiffs succeeded in a class action in getting a “redo” of all the cases. This was known as ABC v. Thornburgh. This case, for all practical purposes, ended the U.S. Government’s efforts to expel the Central American asylum seekers who arrived during the 1980s.

Eventually, class members were allowed to obtain green cards under the Nicaraguan and Central American Relief Act (“NACRA”). I was pleased to have approved numerous NACARA cases during my tenure as an Immigration Judge in Arlington. (Yes, they were still around decades later.)

I was continuously inspired by what these hard-working families had achieved in their lives, notwithstanding our efforts to expel them. No, they weren’t all “rocket scientists.” But, nearly without exception, they were contributing members of our community, providing important services or creating necessary goods.

One of the many things that “gives lie” to the restrictionist claim that the current wave of asylum seekers and migrants from the Northern Triangle won’t “fit in” and be able to assimilate. About the only thing inhibiting “assimilation” is our Government’s unwillingness to allow it to take place, and actually acting to discourage it in many, many ways.

I found NACARA applicants to be remarkably “the same as the rest of us, perhaps better” in terms dedication to the “American Dream,” work ethic, respect for education, and willingness to sacrifice so that future generations could have better lives. The only real difference was the “pure luck” of those of us who had the good fortune to be born here.

A “smart” approach to immigration would be to “can” the waste of resources on border prosecutions and detention and put together another legislative effort like NACARA, only this time for all long-time undocumented residents of the US. But, of course, that wouldn’t serve to “fire up” the White Nationalist electoral base that Trump relies upon.

Common sense, learning from history, responsible use of Government resources, and basic human decency are qualities conspicuously absent from Sessions. But, I think that the “NACRA story” shows a very plausible “ultimate long-term outcome” for the latest, ultimately doomed, efforts to deal with immigration issues exclusively with restrictionist policies.

Finally, Nolan has kindly supplied us with an updated link to a list of all seventy (70) of his past articles in The Hill on immigration policy. Congratulations, Nolan, for your prodigious contributions!

http://thehill.com/search/site/Nolan%20Rappaport

 

PWS

05-15-18

 

 

GONZO’S WORLD: WASTE, FRAUD, & ABUSE CONTINUES AT USDOJ: Sessions Effectively Overwhelming U.S. District Court Dockets With “Parking Ticket Citations,” Giving An “Amnesty” To Real Criminals – How Long Will The Article III’s “Go Along To Get Along?”

http://www.latimes.com/local/california/la-me-ln-immigrant-prosecutions-20180511-story.html

Richard Marosi reports for the LA Times:

The Mexican migrant, slouching in his baggy jail garb, was caught crossing the border and the federal judge in San Diego wanted an explanation.

“I’ll stay in Mexico and won’t come back again,” said Carlos Arizmendi-Dominguez, 34, a former dairy farmer who was trying to return to his family in Idaho.”I ask forgiveness.”

“I’m not here to forgive,” Magistrate Judge William V. Gallo replied.

Across the Southwest border, the crackdown on illegal crossings announced in April 2017 by U.S. Atty. Gen. Jeff Sessions is gaining traction, as immigration caseloads soar and overburdened judicial districts struggle to keep up. Detention space is reaching capacity, courthouses are scrambling to maintain security, and some judges say they have reached their limit.

On Monday, Sessions expanded the crackdown to include more first-time crossers, asylum seekers and parents who will be separated from the children to face prosecution — a move toward “zero tolerance” that will likely further overload the system.

Nowhere are the changes more noticeable than in California. In the southern federal district in San Diego, 1,275 cases were filed in the first three months of this year. Prosecutors now plan to boost criminal immigration filings to about 1,000 per month, according to district data and attorneys at the Federal Defenders of San Diego, who have been notified of increasing prosecution levels by the U.S. attorney’s office.

At that pace, prosecutions could top 9,000 for the year, triple last year’s total and the most since at least since 2000, according to district data.

Prosecutions have gone up about 70% this fiscal year in Arizona, where the chief U.S. District Court judge said this week that the courts can’t take any more cases without additional judges, attorneys, interpreters, deputy marshals and courtroom space.

“If they want to increase prosecutions to a level more than [the] 75 per day that we’re doing, we need pretty much everything,” Judge Raner Collins said.

Most migrants caught at the border are still sent back to Mexico without being prosecuted. By boosting criminal filings, the Trump administration hopes to deter illegal crossings, even as border arrests remain near historic lows.

Migrants prosecuted in California typically have criminal records or, like Arizmendi-Dominguez, have been previously deported, but more first-time crossers are also being charged. Most recently, prosecutors filed criminal charges against 11 members of the caravan of migrants seeking asylum in the U.S.

Sentences for the misdemeanor violations range from 30 to 180 days, depending on the circumstances.

The surge provides fresh evidence for the Trump administration to claim it is following through on its hard-line anti-illegal immigration rhetoric. But the rapid expansion has shown that the judicial system’s shortcomings could also make it harder for the administration to achieve its “zero tolerance” goals, outlined last month by Sessions in response to what he called a border “crisis.”

The U.S. Border Patrol in San Diego still turns over only a fraction of the 120 migrants, on average, it catches daily along the 60-mile stretch it patrols.

The bottlenecks are many: Bed space is in such short supply that migrants are held in jails as far away as Santa Barbara and Arizona, defense attorneys say. There aren’t enough U.S. deputy marshals to transport defendants and provide sufficient security in courtrooms.

Agents from other federal agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Border Patrol, have to provide assistance. And recent court rulings have restricted courts from carrying out fast-track, mass prosecutions like one in Arizona a few years ago known as Operation Streamline, which generated protests.

Attorneys in San Diego say more of their clients are being detained outside the county, making it harder for them to provide an effective defense.

“I would guess that a great deal of those cases will be people with no prior criminal record or prior convictions, which is a sad way to spend our resources,” said Kasha Castillo, a supervisory attorney at the Federal Defenders of San Diego.

Some agencies are receiving more resources; Sessions announced this month that border districts will get 18 new immigration judges and 35 new prosecutors, including eight in California.

“The American people made very clear their desire to secure our border and prioritize the public safety and national security of our homeland,” Sessions said in a statement.

The prospect of facing criminal charges causes some migrants think twice about crossing the border, studies have found. In border areas like Yuma, Ariz., where zero tolerance has been the policy for years, the approach has contributed to record decreases in border arrests.

Across the country, migrants who have been prosecuted for illegal crossing are less likely to attempt to cross again than those who were simply sent back, according to a study by the Migration Policy Institute.

But the deterrent effect varies depending on migrants’ motivations. Mexicans coming to the U.S. for economic reasons are more likely to be deterred by prosecution than Central Americans who are fleeing crime and political instability.

“People from Central America aren’t so easily deterred because conditions are worse there than in Mexico,” said Randy Capps, director of research for U.S. programs at the Migration Policy Institute, who co-wrote the 2017 study.

In the past two weeks the Justice Department has moved swiftly to stiffen penalties against Central Americans — by filing charges against the 11 asylum seekers from the caravan, and by threatening parents with arrest if caught crossing with their children.

“If you are smuggling a child, then we will prosecute you and that child will be separated from you as required by law,” Sessions said at a San Diego news conference Monday.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) called the crackdown on families a “cruel” tactic that betrays the country’s values on basic human rights.

“The goal of this policy is to inflict pain and suffering on people who have already put their lives at risk. We’re better than this,” Feinstein said in a statement.

For now, the majority of migrants being prosecuted in San Diego’s downtown federal courthouse are repeat offenders from Mexico. The cases generally result in plea bargains. Migrants are charged with illegally reentering the country — a felony — and plead guilty to the misdemeanor charge of improper entry.

Defendants file into court several times a week, the sketchy details of their cross-border lives elicited in brief exchanges with magistrate judges.

“I’m guilty only because I wanted to see my daughter,” said Jose Espinoza-Rivera, who said he was going to New York City.

“My only intention was to return to my children,” said Hilario Castaneda Avalos, who lived 17 years in Arizona, caring for his three grandchildren, all U.S. citizens.

When a 56-year-old man with eight previous deportations showed up in court one morning in March, Magistrate Judge Mitchell D. Dembin greeted him warmly; he had seen him before in his courtroom.

“Your persistence in coming back is commendable in one respect, but it shows a lack of respect of U.S. laws,” Dembin said.

Defendants wear jail-issued grays but are not shackled. A ruling last year by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals barred the practice, saying defendants shouldn’t be required to “stand before a court in chains without having been convicted.”

The ruling has constrained caseloads because security guidelines require at least one U.S. deputy marshal to guard each unshackled defendant in the courtroom. When defendants were shackled, groups of up to 12 could be processed at a time in each courtroom.

The hearings move quickly, with the key decision-making centered on how long the sentence will be. Judges usually follow prosecutors’ recommendations, but not always.

Arizmendi-Dominguez, the former dairy farmer from Idaho, said through his attorney that since his last deportation he had spent six years working as a farm laborer in corn and bean fields in Mexico, and that he attempted to return because he longed to see his family, including his father, a U.S. citizen.

Prosecutors recommended a 60-day sentence. Gallo, the judge, sentenced him to 75 days, saying a tougher sentence might “get his attention.”

“I hope you can make a life for yourself in Mexico and I hope its a prosperous life, but you can’t keep coming back to the U.S.,” Gallo said. “The penalties are only going to get worse.”

 

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This is what the “Aimless Docket Reshuffling” that has crippled the U.S. Immigraton Courts since at least 2001 looks like. Now, it’s coming to the U.S. District Courts. The difference: The Article III Courts don’t work for Sessions, aren’t evaluated by him and his subordinates, can’t be fired or transferred by him, and aren’t subject to bogus “quotas.” They are actually independent judges.

PWS

05-13-18

THE HILL: N. Rappaport Asks Whether Trump’s Next “Sanctuary Cities” Strategy Will Include Criminal Prosecutions For Harboring?

http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/immigration/327050-trumps-next-immigration-showdown-sanctuary-cities-and

Nolan writes:

“Gregg Jarrett, a Fox news anchor and former defense attorney, has observed that if this approach fails to force city officials to abide by the law, President Trump can consider charging them with crimes.

According to James H. Walsh, who was an associate general counsel for the Immigration and Naturalization Service, there are several federal statutes that apply to state and local officials and others who interfere with the enforcement of our immigration laws.

I have found at least one provision in the INA that seems to be an appropriate basis for such prosecutions, 8 U.S.C. §1324(a)(1)(A)(iii). It provides criminal penalties for concealing, harboring, or shielding aliens from detection who are in the United States illegally.

It does not specify what actions constitute “harboring.” This has been left to the courts, and the courts have not settled on one uniform definition. But the most frequent characteristic the courts have used to describe “harboring” is that it facilitates an immigrant’s remaining in the United States illegally, and this seems to be the primary reason for sanctuary cities and municipal ID card programs.

Criminal prosecution of responsible government officials is preferable in some ways to withholding federal funding. Withholding federal funding mainly would hurt the people who depend on the funds. It would not have a direct impact on the responsible officials the way prosecuting them would.

Also, the Supreme Court has held that such restrictions on federal funds must “bear some relationship to the purpose of the federal spending,” which may be difficult to establish in this situation.

In any case, we appear to be headed for major conflicts between the Trump administration and state and local governments, which could take a very long time to resolve.”

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Go on over to The Hill at the above link to read Nolan’s entire article.

Regardless of whether or not criminal prosecutions become part of the Trump Administration’s arsenal, I totally agree with Nolan’s conclusion that we’re heading for a major confrontation.

PWS

03-03-17