⚖️🗽🌟👏 🦸🏻‍♀️🎖️CONGRATS TO NDPA SUPERSTAR CAMILLE J. MACKLER ON BEING NAMED A 92ND STREET Y WOMEN inPOWER FELLOW! 

Camille J. Mackler
Camille J. Mackler
Executive Director
Immigrant ARC
PHOTO: JustSecurity

Camille writes on LinkedIn:

I’m beyond excited to be able to finally share that I was selected to be part of this year’s 92nd Street Y Women inPower fellowship!

I’m looking forward to a year of learning, connecting, mentorship (something that so many women of my generation feel they missed out on) and growing within this incredible network of current and past fellows.

🌟 Exciting Announcement: Introducing our 2024 Women inPower Fellows! 🌟

Thrilled to share the news that we are welcoming a new cohort of dynamic and accomplished individuals to our Women inPower Fellowship program this week. 

These extraordinary women embody resilience, leadership, and a commitment to driving positive change in their respective fields. Join us in extending a warm welcome to our 2024 Fellows! 🎉

See full cohort here:https://lnkd.in/ednfEiU9 and press release below

#WomenLeaders #WiP2024 #Welcome #Empowerment

*****************************

Congrats, Camille! You show what true courage, inspiration, and leadership is all about at a time when our nation needs you and other NDPA leaders to fight for human rights, the rule of law, and humane values!

🇺🇸Due Process Forever!

PWS

02-04-23

😇 OBIT: LEON WILDES, 90, LEGENDARY IMMIGRATION LAWYER & EDUCATOR — A Fond Remembrance & Appreciation From Careen Shannon! 🗽

 

Careen writes on her blog:

https://lnkd.in/gRRXvq5p

One day in 2003, I got a call from an acquaintance — the mother of one of my daughter’s middle school classmates — who happened to be the Vice Dean of Cardozo Law School, part of Yeshiva University in New York City. She knew that I was a practicing immigration lawyer with a major immigration law firm, so she was wondering: would I be interested in teaching a course in Immigration Law at Cardozo?

It turned out that Leon Wildes, founder of the esteemed immigration law firm Wildes & Weinberg, PC, and most famous for his representation of John Lennon, had been teaching Immigration Law at Cardozo for many years. But at the age of 70, he was ready to slow down a bit, and teach only one semester per year instead of two semesters. I was asked if I would be willing to teach the class during the spring semester. Leon would continue to teach the fall semester course, as well as oversee an externship program through which he placed students for a semester with nonprofit legal services organizations representing immigrant clients.

I eagerly said yes, and was given the freedom to design my own syllabus and curriculum. I taught the basic doctrinal course in Immigration Law at Cardozo from 2004 through 2011. Then Leon decided to step down from teaching completely. His son, Michael Wildes, an esteemed immigration attorney in his own right, took over the class, and I segued into running the externship program, which I turned into a full-fledged field clinic with a weekly seminar where we did case rounds and focused on different substantive topics each week — both legal topics such as deportation or different visa types, and practice-oriented issues such as how to interview clients who have suffered severe trauma. I continued to run the Immigration Law Field Clinic at Cardozo Law School until 2015.

Now Leon Wildes has passed on, at the age of 90. He leaves behind an incredible legacy as one of the grand old men of the immigration bar. And that story about John Lennon? It’s worth reading.

Leon WIldes, John Lennon, Yoko

Photo from the Wildes & Weinberg, PC website.

Because of Lennon’s affiliation with the Left and his ability to rally young people (during the first presidential election when 18- to 20-year-olds could vote), Richard Nixon considered Lennon to be a threat to his reelection in 1972 and wanted him deported. In defending Lennon against deportation, Leon Wildes — who was so conventional that he purportedly didn’t even know who John Lennon was before he took him on as a client — managed to uncover the then-secret practice (then called the “non-priority program”) within the then-Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) of exercising prosecutorial discretion not to deport certain otherwise deportable individuals.

Wildes’ advocacy led John Lennon and Yoko Ono to succeed in their fight against deportation and enabled them to obtain permanent residence. Moreover, Wildes’ unmasking of the INS’s ability to exercise prosecutorial discretion paved the way for the Obama Administration to later create a policy allowing young people brought to the United States as children — the so-called “Dreamers” — to remain in the United States under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.

Read the story of Leon Wildes’ representation of John Lennon in his first-person account, “Not Just Any Immigration Case,” reprinted on the Wildes & Weinberg website from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law Alumni Review.

RIP Leon Wildes. May his memory be a blessing

Careen Shannon
Senior Counsel (formerly Partner) Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernsen & Loewy, LLP Executive Producer
“Las Abogadas: Attorneys on the Front Lines of the Migrant Crisis.”
Photo: Think Immigration

**************************

Thanks, Careen! Lot’s of “good historical stuff” on the Lennon case on the Wildes & Weinberg PC website: https://www.wildeslaw.com/

I drafted the BIA decision in Lennon that was reversed by the late Chief Judge Irving Kaufman and the 2d Circuit. Leon argued the case before the BIA. 

Another legend, the late Vinnie Schiano (who, according to my Round Table colleague and immigration historian Hon. “Sir Jeffrey” Chase, claimed to have been a co-inventor of the “Master Calendar”) argued for the “Legacy” INS.  At that time, the BIA counted immigration “gurus” Chairman Maury Roberts and Louisa Wilson among its five members. 

I ran into Leon at a number of AILA functions over the years. I think he was friendly with Maury Roberts and the late Sam Bernsen, two of my “mentors.” 

Leon was a gentleman, scholar, and educator, widely respected by those in Government and private practice. 

May he rest in peace after a life well-lived!

🇺🇸 Due Process Forever!

PWS

01-09-24

🇺🇸🗽🙏 THANKSGIVING 2023: Asylum Seekers Give Thanks, Give Back, Deal With Trauma of Forced Migration 

Happy Thanksgiving Vegan Turkey
Many turkeys are giving thanks for a vegan Thanksgiving. Happy Thanksgiving from the “Courtside Family!”
By Cathy Schmidt

Ray Sanchez reports for CNN:

https://www.cnn.com/migrants-thanksgiving-new-york-city?cid=ios_app

. . . .

For many of the thousands of asylum-seekers from all over the world who have arrived in New York City in the last year, Thanksgiving is just another day – considering what they’ve been through. And what lies ahead.

The holiday is one more day to focus on immigrations papers, jobs to secure, a new language to learn, and a cold and sprawling city to navigate.

“We want to adapt to new traditions,” said Garcia, speaking Saturday at a Manhattan middle school where she and other migrants baked pumpkin pies they distributed to homeless shelters with the help of a nonprofit that provides free legal representation for children and families.

“We will always have Venezuela in our hearts. But we will need to adapt to new customs in order to survive here.”

. . . .

************************

Read the full article at the link.

Survivors, contributors, adaptors, seeking the same universal human rights: safety, security, meaningful work, a better future! Don’t let the myths and fears bury the truth and humanity! Also, this article highlights the essential role of the many NGOs who have stepped up to make the system work, sometimes in spite of itself!

🇺🇸 HAPPY THANKSGIVING & DUE PROCESS FOREVER!

PWS

11-23-23

STUART ANDERSON @ FORBES WITH SOME COMMON SENSE ADVICE: “Let ‘Em Work!” — “There are labor shortages in many U.S. industries, where employers are prepared to offer training and jobs to individuals who are authorized to work in the United States.”💡

Stuart Anderson
Stuart Anderson
Executive Director
National Foundation for American Policy
PHOTO:Linkedin

Parole programs and other legal pathways reduce illegal entry and are more humane. “Latin American experts say it is wrong to assume immigration enforcement policies can override the human instinct to leave untenable circumstances and seek a better life.” #immigration #asylum #asylumseekers

https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7103429953483849728?updateEntityUrn=urn%3Ali%3Afs_updateV2%3A%28urn%3Ali%3Aactivity%3A7103429953483849728%2CFEED_DETAIL%2CEMPTY%2CDEFAULT%2Cfalse%29&lipi=urn%3Ali%3Apage%3Ad_flagship3_myitems_savedposts%3Bb2bYzbhpTP2VzgwEtxkzqQ%3D%3D

 

New York City business leaders have asked the Biden administration to provide more federal aid and expedite work permits for asylum seekers. If asylum seekers could work, they would likely find their own housing, which would ease the burden on New York and other city governments. Businesses around the country seek more workers to fill positions. Advocates recommend policies that would provide a more comprehensive solution amid an historic refugee crisis that analysts consider unlikely to be addressed through enforcement-only policies.

A Plea From Businesses

“The New York business community is deeply concerned about the humanitarian crisis that has resulted from the continued flow of asylum seekers into our country,” according to an August 28, 2023, letter from the Partnership for New York City to President Biden and Congressional leaders. “We write to support the request made by New York Governor Hochul for federal funding for educational, housing, security and health care services to offset the costs that local and state governments are incurring with limited federal aid.

“In addition, there is a compelling need for expedited processing of asylum applications and work permits for those who meet federal eligibility standards. Immigration policies and control of our country’s border are clearly a federal responsibility; state and local governments have no standing in this matter. There are labor shortages in many U.S. industries, where employers are prepared to offer training and jobs to individuals who are authorized to work in the United States.”

. . . .

*******************

Read the complete article at the link.

For each of my classes in Immigration Law & Policy @ Georgetown Law, the students were required to find and report on an item relating or illustrating the topic for the class. Stuart Anderson was one of the “most reported on” sources! I think it’s because his writing is so clear, understandable, and sensible to all audiences!

Immigration affects everything and is a key to a better future for all. That’s why it’s a shame Dems aren’t willing to tout it, instead basically ceding the issue to GOP restrictionists. Big mistake, in my view!

🇺🇸  Due Process Forever!

PWS

09-03-23

😭A LAWYER’S LAMENT FROM TSUI YEE: “Oh, For The Good Old Days Of Public Service & Positive Personal Contact With The Immigration Bureaucracy!”

Tsui H. Yee, Esquire
Tsui H. Yee, Esquire
Law Offices of Tsui H. Yee, PC
New York, NY
PHOTO: Linkedin

From LinkedIn:

The longer I have been practicing immigration law, the more I long for ‘the good old days.’

I remember being able to call the Vermont Service Center, and being able to speak to an immigration officer to go over issues on a case. These officers were friendly, knowledgeable, and willing to help resolve issues. They were not adversarial or looking for ways to deny your client’s petition or application. In fact, a few of these officers would give me their home phone to call them, because some of them worked from home during the work week.

I remember when NVC was super-efficient, organized and a pleasure to deal with. Yes, there was a time when NVC actually knew what they were doing and were responsive. I went on a tour to visit NVC’s offices in Portsmouth, NH, and the NVC staff who led the tour were completely transparent about their process.

I remember being able to walk into the local USCIS office, and speak to a supervisor in person about a problem. For example, if USCIS denied an application in error, it was possible to convince the supervisor to reopen the denied case with proof that USCIS’ denial was incorrect. This is known as a “Service motion” and if granted, USCIS would not require the motion to reopen / reconsider filing fee because it was their own mistake.

Nowadays, none of the above would be possible. The immigration government agencies have removed themselves almost completely from having to deal with the public, which makes an immigration attorney’s job all that more challenging. Sadly, USCIS and NVC are really out of touch with the hurdles that attorneys and clients face in navigating an extremely complex area of law.

#immigration #USCIS #NVC #governmentaccountability #immigrationlawyer

***********************

Thanks, Tsui!

Very true and perceptive! Public service seems to be an afterthought these days. The Trump Administration actually took it out of USCIS’s mission statement! And, they squandered funds that were supposed to be spent on timely, professional adjudications and wasted it on a variety of bogus enforcement gimmicks designed to discourage the public from applying for ANY immigration benefit! 

The Biden Administration has tried to make some improvements. For example, USCIS just announced a new system for scheduling appointments. But, there is still a long, long way to go!

Some of the comments on Tsui’s post on Linkedin are making me almost nostalgic for my days in the “Legacy INS” in the 1970’s and 80’s. It could be a strange place. (My good friend and colleague Joanna London used to say, “Truth is stranger than fiction. And INS is stranger than truth.”)

But, there definitely were human connections, efforts to solve problems, and institutional/legal knowledge there that seem to be largely missing from today’s DHS and DOJ/EOIR. Certainly, the “INS years” were the formative ones in my legal career.

I know there are some very good folks at DHS and EOIR now. But, they seem to be hidden from the public and largely inaccessible. I learned tons from individuals like Maury Roberts, Charlie Gordon, Louisa Wilson, Sam Bernsen, Ralph Farb, “Iron Mike” Inman, Doris Meissner, Leon Ulman, Dick Scully, James P. “Phil” Morris, Sol Isenstein, Andy Carmichael, Neil Leary, Hugh Brien, Irv Appleman, Charlie McCarthy, Glen Bertness, (fellow Wisconsinite) Roger “Buck” Brandemuehl, “Cousin Bob” Schmidt, et al. Can’t think of many folks of that stature in today’s rather bloated and largely faceless immigration bureaucracy.

During my days in private practice, I remember a Service Center adjudicator calling to tell me we had inadvertently overpaid the filing fee, rather than “rejecting” the application and returning it to us by mail. Another time, an adjudicator called with a request for an additional document, saying the application was so obviously carefully and thoughtfully prepared and indexed that he saw no point in returning it with a “deficiency notice.” Can’t see those types of personal touches, which actually promoted efficiency, happening today.

Even EOIR, which used to be the “human face of American justice” (for better or worse), has now moved largely to televideo hearings, e-filing, and “remote adjudication centers” masquerading as “courts.” There are pros and cons to these moves. Certainly, many of us have been calling for e-filing for years; a number of attorneys I have talked with appreciate the convenience and flexibility provided by televideo hearings. So, it’s a mixed bag. 

I will say that having done thousands of both televideo and in person hearings over my years on the bench, I always found in person hearings easier to conduct and more conducive to justice. I also enjoyed and benefitted from consistent professional relationships with the Arlington private bar and the Arlington Chief Counsel’s Office, something that has been largely lost with the advent of adjudication centers removed from the public and the unilateral decision by ICE to only “selectively participate” in Immigration Court litigation. (Just today, “Arlington Court Alum” Nicole Lillibridge Radakovich, now an attorney on the staff of the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Brunswick, Georgia (where I used to teach on an occasional basis during my “Legacy INS” days) “reconnected” with me through Linkedin!)

I used to view my “courtroom as a classroom” where we were all learning and improving case-by-case. I wonder if that era has passed at today’s EOIR?

Tsui’s post also reminds me of one of my first published “separate opinions” during my tenure as BIA Chair. Matter of Ponce De Leon, 22 I&N Dec. 154, 159 (BIA 1996, 1997; AG 1997) (Schmidt, Chairman, concurring). It was immediately dubbed “The Chairman’s Lament” by my BIA colleague the late Judge Fred W. Vacca. Turned out to be one of many to follow!

🇺🇸Due Process Forever!

PWS

08-22-23

☹️ WORLD REFUGEE DAY 2023  (JUNE 20) IN AMERICA: More Asylum Seekers Denied Access; Flubbed Resettlement; Kids Face Court Alone; NGOs Left To Pick Up Slack!

 

Starving ChildrenKids are among the many groups of refugees and asylum seekers ill-served by the Biden Administration’s policies and performance. “World Refugee Day 2023” is a rather grim reminder of America’s failure to live up to its obligations to the world’s most vulnerable!
Creative Commons License

ACCESS DENIED

Hamed Aleaziz reports for the LA Times:

https://apple.news/AnR6bRRRoSxm4nMAHyNOLXQ

A new Biden administration policy has dramatically lowered the percentage of migrants at the southern border who enter the United States and are allowed to apply for asylum, according to numbers revealed in legal documents obtained by The Times. Without these new limits to asylum, border crossings could overwhelm local towns and resources, a Department of Homeland Security official warned a federal court in a filing this month.

The new asylum policy is the centerpiece of the Biden administration’s border efforts. 

Under the new rules, people who cross through a third country on the way to the U.S. and fail to seek protections there are presumed ineligible for asylum. Only people who enter the U.S. without authorization are subject to this new restriction.

The number of single-adult migrants who are able to pass initial screenings at the border has dropped from 83% to 46% under the new policy, the Biden administration said in the court filing. The 83% rate refers to initial asylum screenings between 2014 and 2019; the new data cover the period from May 12, the first full day the new policy was in place, through June 13.

Since the expiration of Title 42 rules that allowed border agents to quickly turn back migrants at the border without offering them access to asylum, the administration has pointed to a drop in border crossings as proof that its policies are working.

But immigrant advocates and legal groups have blasted Biden’s new asylum policy, arguing that it is a repurposed version of a Trump-era effort that made people in similar circumstances ineligible for asylum. (Under Biden’s policy, certain migrants can overcome the presumption that they are ineligible for asylum.) The ACLU and other groups have sought to block the rule in federal court in San Francisco, in front of the same judge who stopped the Trump policy years ago.

The new filing provides the first look at how the Biden administration’s asylum policy is affecting migrants who have ignored the government’s warnings not to cross the border. 

“This newly released data confirms that the new asylum restrictions are as harsh as advocates warned,” said Aaron Reichlin-Melnick, policy director at the American Immigration Council. “The data contradicts conservative attacks on the rule for being too lenient. Less than 1 in 10 people subject to the rule have been able to rebut its presumption against asylum eligibility.”

. . . .

*******************

Read Hamed’s full story at the link.

None of the statistics cited in the article actually give a full picture, since the don’t account for 1) families, 2) children, and 3) those processed at ports of entry using the highly controversial “CBP One App.” Nor do they give insights into what happens to those denied access to the asylum adjudication system.

As Aaron Reichlin-Melnick points out, increased rejections of legal access are exactly what experts, including our Round Table of Former Immigration Judges, predicted in vigorously opposing the Administration’s ill-advised regulatory changes. See, e.g., https://immigrationcourtside.com/2023/03/27/⚔️🛡-round-table-joins-chorus-of-human-rights-experts-slamming-biden-administrations-abominable-death-to-asylum-seekers-☠️-proposed/.

In the article, DHS official Blas Nuñez-Neto babbles on about the wonders of mindless extralegal enforcement as a “deterrent.” In a classic example of disingenuous misdirection, Nuñez-Neto appears to suggest that “success” in implementing asylum laws should be measured in terms of the number of individuals denied access or discouraged from applying. 

Actually, success in implementing asylum laws should be measured solely by whether 1) all asylum applicants regardless of status or where they apply are treated fairly and humanely; and 2) those eligible for asylum under a properly generous, protection-focused application of asylum laws are actually granted asylum in a timely manner complying with due process. By those measures, there is zero (O) evidence that the Biden Administration’s approach is “successful.” 

Moreover, Nuñez-Neto’s comments and much of the media focus skirt the real issue here. Border apprehensions have decreased because asylum seekers in Northern Mexico appear to be “waiting to see” if the “CBP One App System” at ports of entry actually offers them a fair, viable, orderly way of applying for asylum. In other words, does the Biden Administration’s legal asylum processing system have “street credibility?” 

So far, CBP One and DHS appear determined to “flunk” that test; the App continues to be plagued with technical and access glitches, and the numbers of appointments available is grossly inadequate to meet the well-known and largely predictable demand.

If the border lurches out of control in the future, it probably will be not the fault of legal asylum seekers. Rather, it will be caused by poorly-conceived and legally questionable Biden “deterrence policies” and the restrictionist politicians (in both parties, but primarily the GOP) who are “egging them on.”  That is, an Administration unable to distinguish its friends from its enemies and unwilling to develop a comprehensive strategy for dealing with the inevitably of refugee flows by creatively and positively using and “leveraging” the ample (if imperfect) existing tools under our legal system. 

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ADMINISTRATION’S FLUBBED RESETTLEMENT (NON) EFFORT EMPOWERS GOP WHITE NATIONALISTS, VEXES PROGRESSIVE DEMS

Nick Miroff & Joanna Slater report for WashPost:

NEW YORK — On the fourth day of his new life in New York City, Antony Reyes set out from the opulent lobby of Manhattan’s Roosevelt Hotelwith an empty wallet and the address of a juice bar on Broadway possibly offering some work.

Reyes had been staying at the crowded hotel-turned-emergency service center, hunting odd jobs during the day along with other newly arrived Venezuelans who navigated the streets of midtown using “Las Pantallas”— the Screens (a.k.a. Times Square) as a landmark.

“I just want to work,” Reyes said in Spanish. “I didn’t come here to be a burden on anyone.”

Reyes, 23, was among the tens of thousands of migrants who rushed to cross the U.S.-Mexico border ahead of May 11, when the Biden administration lifted the pandemic policy known as Title 42. The largest group were Venezuelans, who have been arriving to the United States in record numbers since 2021.

Unlike previous waves of Latin American immigrants who gravitated to communities where friends and family could receive them, the most recent Venezuelan newcomers tend to lack those networks in the United States. Many have headed straight to New York, whose shelter system guarantees a bed to anyone regardless of immigration status.

City officials say they are housing more than 48,000 migrants across an array of hotels, dormitories and makeshift shelters that now spans 169 emergency sites.

New York has spent $1.2 billion on the relief effort since last summer. The ballooning costs have left Mayor Eric Adams feuding with local leaders upstate over who should take responsibility for the migrants, and he has also called out President Biden, a fellow Democrat, for not sending more aid.

Other U.S. cities are struggling with the influx too. Denver, Philadelphia and Washington — all cities with Democratic mayors — have received migrants bused from Texas as part of a campaign by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott to denounce Biden administration border policies. In Chicago, migrants have slept in police stations while awaiting shelter beds.

Officials in those cities are scrambling to find bed space and clamoring for more federal assistance. But the ad hoc nature of the humanitarian effort raises questions about the ability of New York City and other jurisdictions to receive and resettle so many newcomers.

The flow of Venezuelans crossing the southern border has dropped since the Title 42 policy ended, even as many continue arriving in cities in northern Mexico in hopes of reaching the United States. The Biden administration is tightening border controls and urging Venezuelans and others to apply for legal U.S. entry using a mobile app, while expanding the number of slots available for asylum seekers to make an appointment at an official border crossing.

The number of people requesting appointments, however, far outstrips supply.

The influx of migrants in New York has pushed the city’s total shelter population to 95,000, up from 45,000 when Adams took office in January 2022.

“We have reached a point where the system is buckling,” Anne Williams-Isom, deputy mayor for health and human services, told reporters at a news conference in late May.

. . . .

******************

Read the rest of Nick’s & Joanna’s article at the link.

This Administration has been in office more than two years, with knowledge of the inevitable flow of asylum seekers, particularly from Venezuela and access to some of the best and most innovative human rights experts in the private sector.

Yet, this Administration has failed to 1) put in place an orderly nationwide resettlement system in partnership with the many NGOs and some localities “already in the business;” 2) construct “regional reception centers” to provide food, shelter, representation, and support to asylum seekers during the legal process, as recommended by many experts, and 3)  restore functionality and timeliness to the legal asylum systems at USCIS and EOIR by a) cleaning out the “deadwood” (or worse) accumulated during the Trump Administration, and b) hiring experts, not afraid to properly use asylum and other laws to “protect rather than reject” and to replace the anti-asylum culture and legal regimes installed and encouraged at DHS and EOIR under Tump.

Additionally, most Venezuelans can’t be returned anyway, and the Administration’s apparent hope to “orbit” many of them to Mexico, a country far less able to absorb them than than the U.S., is ill-advised at best. 

Consequently, updating TPS for Venezuelans and others, thus providing employment authorization and keeping them out of the already dysfunctional asylum system, should have been a “no brainer” for this Administration.

This is a truly miserable absence of creative, practical problems-solving by a group that ran on promises to do better. Given the shortage of affordable housing in NY and other areas, why not “replicate and update” the CCC, WPA, and other public works projects from FDR’s “New Deal?” 

Give those arriving individuals with the skill sets opportunities to construct affordable housing for anyone in need, with an chance to live in the finished product as an added incentive! Let migrants be contributors and view their presence as an opportunity to be built upon rather than as a  “problem” that can’t be solved. 

Not rocket science! 🚀 But, evidently “above the pay grade” for Biden Administration immigration policy wonks!

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CONSTITUTION MOCKED BY ALL THREE BRANCHES AS KIDS CONTINUE TO FACE IMMIGRATION COURT ALONE!

https://documentedny.com/2023/06/20/unaccompanied-minors-immigration-court-asylum/

GIULIA MCDONNELL NIETO DEL RIO reports for Documented:

The 10-year-old boy sat in a chair that was too big for him and he asked the immigration judge in Spanish if he could speak to the court.

“Please, don’t deport me,” the boy, Dominick Rodriguez-Herrera, pleaded into the microphone. “I want to stay with my brother.”

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Then he buried his head into his mother’s stomach as they embraced, tears welling in both their eyes. “Don’t cry,” his mother told him softly, with one arm around Dominick, and the other holding her two-month-old son who whined on her shoulder.

Also Read: The Central American Minors Program Struggles to Get Back on Its Feet

The family, from Guatemala, was at the Broadway immigration court in Lower Manhattan last week for an initial hearing in Dominick’s immigration case. Dominick had crossed the U.S.-Mexico border alone in March of 2022, and was designated as an unaccompanied minor. 

Dominick’s mother, Nelly Herrera, told Documented the ordeal began when they were both  kidnapped in Mexico and separated. She said Dominick escaped their captors and reached the U.S. border. Malnourished and thin from weeks of little food, he managed to squeeze through a wall into California, although she’s not sure where. He was only eight years old, and had no idea where his mother was.

“He doesn’t talk about all that a lot because he says it’s something he doesn’t want to be reminded of anymore,” she said.

After authorities helped Herrera escape her captors in Mexico, she and Dominick were reunited last year. Now, without a lawyer, they are fighting for a chance for Dominick to stay with her in the U.S.

At a time when immigration courts are struggling to manage the high volume of migrants coming to New York City, another section of the system is facing a high volume of deportation cases: those of unaccompanied minors – children who entered the U.S. when they were under the age of 18, without a parent. Many of them show up to court without an attorney, and advocates are concerned that there aren’t enough resources to reach all of them.

“We are definitely seeing an uptick in the numbers,” said Sierra Kraft, executive director of a coalition called the Immigrant Children Advocates Relief Effort (ICARE).

Kraft said she observed the juvenile docket several times this year and found hundreds of children had come to court without legal representation.

“There was a little two year old that was sitting there with a sponsor, and they had no representation and really no idea what to do next. So it’s a real crisis,” Kraft said.

. . . .

At a Senate hearing on the safety of unaccompanied migrant children in Congress last week, Lorie Davidson, Vice President of Children and Family Services at Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service, testified that most unaccompanied children do not have an attorney to represent them.

“I do not know of any other circumstances in which a three-year-old would have to represent themselves in court. It is indefensible,” Davidson said at the hearing.

. . . .

***************************

Read Giulia’s complete article at the link.

Administrations of both parties have employed and disgracefully defended this clearly unconstitutional, due-process-denying process. The “low point” was probably during the Obama Administration when an EOIR Assistant Chief Immigration Judge infamously claimed that he could “teach asylum law to toddlers” — touching off an avalanche of internet satire. See https://www.aclu.org/video/can-toddlers-really-represent-themselves-immigration-court.

But, the Executive has had plenty of help from Congress and the Article III Courts, who both have failed to end this mockery of constitutional due process as well as common sense. It’s hard to imagine a more glaring, depressing example of failure of public officials to take their oaths of office seriously!

On the other hand, NY Immigration Judge Olivia Cassin, mentioned in the full article, is the right person for the job of handling the so-called “juvenile docket” at EOIR. A true expert in immigration and human rights laws, she came to the job several decades ago with deep experience and understanding gained from representing individuals pro bono in Immigration Court. 

She is a model of what should be the rule, not the exception, for those sitting on the Immigration Bench at both the trial and appellate levels. Although AG Garland has done somewhat better than his predecessors in “balancing” his appointments, EOIR still skews far too much toward those with only prosecutorial experience or lacking ANY previous immigration and human rights qualifications.  

Consequently, poor, inconsistent, and uneven judicial performance remains endemic at EOIR and not sufficiently addressed by Garland in his two plus years in office. Just another reason why Garland’s failing courts are running a 2 million case backlog and are unable to provide the nationwide due process, guidance, leadership, and consistency that EOIR was supposedly created to furnish.

Brilliant, well-qualified, and committed as individuals like Judge Cassin are, they are not going to be able to solve this problem without some help and leadership from above. Sadly, this doesn’t appear got be on the horizon.

****************************

UPHOLDING THE RULE OF LAW & HUMAN DECENCY FOR REFUGEES HAS BEEN LEFT LARGELY TO NGOs IN LIGHT OF THE USG’S SYSTEMIC FAILURE 

Jenell Scarborough, Pathway to Citizenship Coordinator at EL CENTRO HISPANO INC, reports on Linkedin on a on a more optimistic note about the activities of those who actually are working to preserve and extend the rule of law and human decency to refugees:

What a way to celebrate World Refugee Day, with a community listening section where we meet community leaders who every day make extraordinary efforts to join forces and serve Immigrants and Refugees. We’re not just hearing from Eva A. Millona Chief, USCIS Office of Citizenship, Partnership and Engagement and the Chief of Foreign Affairs for Foster America.
 Thanks to Cristina España for keeping us connected with local government agencies and making visible the work of grassroots organizations, where El Centro Hispano works tirelessly. Without a doubt a great night!

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Way to go, Jenell. Encouraging to know that you are taking our legal obligations to refugees seriously, even if too many USG officials in all three branches aren’t! (Eva A. Millona of USCIS, mentioned in the post appears to be a rare exception among those in leadership positions within this Administration).

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🇺🇸 MAKE EVERY DAY WORLD REFUGEE DAY, & Due Process Forever!

PWS

06-21-23

 

 

🇺🇸⚖️🗽👍🏼👏 “A LIFE VERY WELL-LIVED!” — Join The Family & Friends Of Judge William Van Wyke For A Celebration Of His Life & Legacy!😎 — April 1, 2023

Judge William Van Wyke
Judge William Van Wyke (D -Aug. 14, 2022)
U.S. Immigration Judge (Ret.)
Member Round Table of Former Immigration Judges
“A True Due Process Visionary”
PHOTO: the world.com

An invitation  from the family of Judge William Van Wyke:

Please join us to celebrate the remarkable life of William Peter Van Wyke on Saturday, April 1, 2023. We will hold a remembrance at River Road Unitarian Church, 6301 River Road, Bethesda, MD, from 10 AM to noon, followed by an afternoon of food, drinks, music, and fun at the nearby Carderock Recreation Area Pavilion along the Potomac River.

The family invites and welcomes all who knew William and would be interested in attending.

🇺🇸 Due Process Forever! (A very “William Van Wyke” thing!)

Hope to see your there!

PWS

03-09-23

🇺🇸🗽⚖️🦸🏼‍♀️🎖RECOGNIZING AN AMERICAN HERO & DUE PROCESS MAVEN, ANNE PILSBURY! — Hon. “Sir Jeffrey” Chase’s Heartfelt Tribute — “Those of us who care about people on the wrong side of history just have to help case by case, person by person.” (Corrected Version)

Anne Pilsbury ESQUIREAmerican Legal Superhero
PHOTO: Courtesy of Jeff Chase
Anne Pilsbury ESQUIRE
American Legal Superhero
PHOTO: Courtesy of Hon. Jeffrey Chase

UPDATE & CORRECTED WITH PICTURE OF THE “REAL” ANNE PILSBURY — THANKS TO SIR JEFFREY!

Jeffrey S. Chase
Hon. Jeffrey S. Chase
Jeffrey S. Chase Blog
Coordinator & Chief Spokesperson, Round Table of Former Immigration Judges

https://www.jeffreyschase.com/blog/2023/1/18/thanking-anne-pilsbury

JEFFREY S. CHASE | OPINIONS/ANALYSIS ON IMMIGRATION LAW

Blog Archive Press and Interviews Calendar Contact

Thanking Anne Pilsbury

“Those of us who care about people on the wrong side of history just have to help case by case, person by person.” – Anne Pilsbury, quoted in Francisco Goldman, “Escape to New York,” The New Yorker, Aug. 9, 2016.

Anne Pilsbury is well; she continues to work at Central American Legal Assistance (“CALA”), the organization she founded almost four decades ago. She was recently awarded the Carol Weiss King Award by the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild. She remains most generous in sharing her knowledge with the immigration law community in New York.

However, as of January 1, Anne has stepped down from CALA’s helm, passing the Directorship of the organization to the extremely talented Heather Axford.

It thus seems like an appropriate time to honor Anne’s extraordinary career. Her path from Washington, D.C. to Maine “country lawyer” to representing asylum-seekers in Williamsburg, Brooklyn is a fascinating one. It began with Anne’s role as plaintiff’s counsel in Hobson v. Wilson,1 a remarkable case having nothing to do with immigration law.

Hobson involved a top-secret FBI operation of the late-1960s to early-1970s called COINTELPRO, which targeted civil rights groups seeking racial equality, and another set of organizations actively opposing the Vietnam war. COINTELPRO specifically listed the Southern Christian Leadership Conference led by Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee as primary targets.

In the words of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals, COINTELPRO focused on “(1) efforts to create racial animosity between Blacks and Whites; (2) interference with lawful demonstration logistics; (3) efforts to create discord within groups or to portray a group’s motives or goals falsely to the public; and (4) direct efforts to intimidate the plaintiffs.”2

Regarding the degree of those efforts, according to a 1976 Senate Select Committee Report

From December 1963 until his death in 1968, Martin Luther King, Jr. was the target of an intensive campaign by the Federal Bureau of Investigation to “neutralize” him as an effective civil rights leader. In the words of the man in charge of the FBI’s “war” against Dr. King:

No-holds were barred. We have used [similar] techniques against Soviet agents. [The same methods were] brought home against any organization against which we were targeted. We did not differentiate. This is a rough, tough business.3

Beginning her work on the case as a law student in D.C. and continuing with the case while in private practice in D.C., Anne and her co-counsel brought suit against the FBI for systemically violating their clients’ “constitutional rights, individually and through conspiracies, while plaintiffs engaged in lawful protest against government policy in the late 1960’s and in the 1970’s in the Washington area.”4   After a 17 day trial, Anne and her colleagues won the suit. In my view, that case alone earned Anne membership in the Due Process Army Hall of Fame.

During the time Hobson was being litigated, Anne moved to Maine, opening her own practice there in the town of Norway (pop. 5,000), traveling back and forth to D.C. for the Hobson trial. So then how did she end up in Brooklyn representing asylum seekers?

Anne explained to me that the government appealed the Hobson decision to the D.C. Circuit (in 1982), after which Anne began traveling to the New York City offices of the Center for Constitutional Rights, who served as her co-counsel on the appeal. And finding some time on her hands during the two-year pendency of that appeal allowed Anne to pursue her interest in helping those fleeing civil war in Central America, which was an issue very much in the news at the time. Although Anne found groups dedicated to the issue itself, she was less successful in locating organizations actually providing representation to immigrants from Central America.

Anne continued that INS was detaining Central Americans at that time in the Brooklyn Navy Yard.5 Anne learned that a local Catholic priest and nun, Father Bryan Karvelis and Sister Peggy Walsh, were visiting those detainees, sometimes paying the bond for their release; they even housed those who had nowhere to stay in the rectory of their Brooklyn church. And Sister Peggy had obtained accredited representative status, allowing her to represent individuals before the government.

In Anne’s words, after litigating against the FBI in Hobson, she naively thought that by comparison, dealing with INS “would be a piece of cake.” Between briefs in Hobson, Anne  organized a group of pro bono lawyers to represent Central Americans in applying for asylum under the brand-new 1980 Refugee Act. Anne spent the first year working out of her car, after which Father Bryan offered her space in the Transfiguration Church on Hooper Street, where CALA remains located to this day.

Anne thus began CALA with no funding, paying a secretary herself, and working without a salary for about two years. In a wonderfully ironic twist, CALA’s first funding came from Anne’s attorney fees in Hobson, thus making the FBI CALA’s first major benefactor.

Interestingly, Anne explained that it took a few years before the newly created EOIR began to hear Central American cases in earnest; in the early 1980s, the federal government somehow believed that the problems in the region would be over in a year or two.

Once they did begin hearing Central American cases, the Immigration Judges of that time denied virtually all of their asylum claims, generally doing so by incorrectly classifying the feared harm as “random violence.” In spite of the new asylum law intended to make adjudications fairer and free of political influence, it took years before Anne won her first asylum case.

And yet Anne persevered, building a model program and recruiting and mentoring outstanding lawyers. Anne also challenged EOIR’s misguided decisions and policies in the federal courts.

I want to make it clear that I had not included this next anecdote in my initial draft; it is being added at Anne’s own request. But while fighting to prevent the deportation of factory workers illegally arrested in a workplace raid, a March 1988 conference before U.S. District Court Judge Mark A. Constantino apparently became quite heated, resulting in the judge holding Anne in criminal contempt of court. That order was overturned by the Second Circuit in Matter of Pilsbury.6 The Second Circuit decision contained the following quote directed at Anne by Judge Constantino:

You go practice your shabby law somewheres [sic] else. Don’t you dare practice it in the Eastern District. You no longer will be permitted to practice in any part of this court. You will not be able to practice in this court or the immigration service. This court will see to it.7

Judge Constantino’s words turned out to be about as accurate as the Department of Justice’s belief that the turmoil in Central America would settle down after a few months. Some thirty-five years later, Anne’s impact on asylum case law has been nothing less than remarkable.

In 1994, in the case of Osorio v. INS,8 Anne prevailed in challenging the BIA’s determination that a labor union leader’s fear of persecution in Guatemala was not on account of his political opinion because, as a labor union leader, his point of dispute with the Guatemalan government was economic, not political.

In reversing the BIA’s conclusion, the Second Circuit quoted a statement made by Anne at oral argument, which became one of the most famous lines in asylum law history: that according to the BIA’s view, the Nobel Prize winning Soviet novelist and renowned dissident “Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn would not have been eligible for political asylum because his dispute with the former Soviet Union is properly characterized as a literary, rather than a political, dispute.”9

The court agreed with Anne that “Regardless of whether their dispute might have been characterized as a literary dispute, it might also have been properly characterized as a political dispute.”10 The Osorio decision remains extremely relevant today for its expansive view of what constitutes “political opinion” for asylum purposes, and for recognizing that nexus can be satisfied where the persecution is on account of mixed motives, a concept later codified by Congress.

A month earlier, in the case of Sotelo-Aquije v. Slattery,11  Anne had won a Second Circuit victory for a community leader from Peru who was denied asylum by the BIA in spite of being at risk of violence for speaking out against the Shining Path.

Also in 1994, Anne prevailed before the Ninth Circuit in a case called Campos v. Nail,12 challenging an Immigration Judge’s pattern or practice of denying all motions for change of venue filed by Salvadoran and Guatemalan asylum seekers who had not established a U.S. address prior to their arrest by the INS.  In applying this policy without consideration of the individual’s circumstances, the IJ forced respondents who had long settled thousands of miles away to return at no small expense to Arizona for their hearings, or face an in absentia deportation order if unable to do so. The Ninth Circuit agreed with Anne that the policy violated the petitioners’ “statutory and regulatory rights to be assured a reasonable opportunity to attend their deportation hearings and to present evidence on their own behalf,” which “in turn interfered with the plaintiffs’ statutory and regulatory rights to apply for asylum and to obtain representation by counsel at no expense to the government.”13

Anne later won two cases before the Second Circuit creating important protections for asylum seekers in establishing their credibility before Immigration Judges. The precedent decisions in Alvarado-Carillo v. INS,14 and Secaida-Rosales v. INS15 rejected the application of an inappropriate standard relying on speculation or conjecture in rejecting an asylum applicant’s credibility, and required that such determinations be based on facts material to the claim. However, in noting how difficult keeping such gains can be, Anne pointed to the fact that both of these decisions were specifically cited with disapproval by Congress in its subsequent amendments contained in the 2005 REAL ID Act giving Immigration Judge greater leeway to deny asylum based on credibility or corroboration.

In 2006, Anne won an important case recognizing that a different standard applies when determining persecution to children. In Jorge-Tzoc v. Gonzales,16 the Second Circuit held that harm that had not been found to rise to the level of persecution to an adult “could well constitute persecution to a small child totally dependent on his family and community.” The court also cited INS’s asylum guidelines for children recognizing that “The harm a child fears or has suffered, however, may be relatively less than that of an adult and still qualify as persecution.”17

I’ve just mentioned some of the highlights from Anne’s career. From her office inside the Transfiguration Church, the entity Anne founded has assisted thousands of immigrants over the years. And CALA has very much remained focused on the community it serves; as Anne says, that is very much by choice. Among those serving on the organization’s Board of Directors are early clients of CALA, along with former staff.

The community connection is not limited to people. The CALA website lists among its staff, photo and all, “Oscar Gerardi Caceres the Cat,” an actual cat rescued by Anne (as opposed to an attorney with a cat filter), whose responsibilities are listed as “greeting clients, inspecting files, and prowling the office as our security guard.” It must be pointed out that this whimsical entry also carries a far more serious meaning, as the office cat has been named to honor the memory of three fallen leaders of the decades-long violence in Central America:  Msgr. Oscar Romero (killed in 1980 in El Salvador), Berta Caceres, an environmental activist and indigenous leader killed in Honduras in 2016, and Bishop Juan Gerardi, killed in Guatemala in 1998 right after releasing the church’s devastating truth commission report on military atrocities.

Over the years, I have left every conversation with Anne having learned something important. Anne has a casual, often direct way of speaking; her words can be simultaneously remarkably simple and deeply profound.

I offer as an example this quote of hers from the same 2016 New Yorker article quoted above:

“I never expected it to take so long for our government to wake up to what was happening in Central America, and to stop funding militaries and wars, and stop blaming immigrants for trying to save their own lives….Thirty years later, I’m no longer so optimistic, I don’t expect people here to learn from history anymore. Of course, you never stop hoping they will, when the lessons are so obvious.”

In 2006, the block of Marcy Avenue on which the Transfiguration Church sits was named “Msgr. Bryan J. Karvelis Way.” I found online remarks made by City Council Member Diana Reyna during the meeting at which the naming was voted upon. Those remarks included the following:

Brooklyn parishes, like their neighborhoods, have gone through a lot of changes over the years. But one thing remains constant: in a Diocese of Immigrants, they continue to reach out to the latest newcomers, and make a home for them. Transfiguration parish is a superb example of this, and today is a good day to celebrate its history.

In paying tribute to Father Bryan, those remarks are no doubt also a tribute to the work of Anne and CALA over the past 40 years.

Please join me in thanking Anne Pilsbury profoundly, and wishing her all of the best  her future pursuits.

Notes:

  1. 737 F.2d 1 (D.C. Cir. 1984).
  2. Id. at 11.
  3. Senate Select Committee, Book III: Supplementary Detailed Staff Reports, 94th Cong., 2d sess., 1976, S. Rep. 94-755 at 81; https://www.intelligence.senate.gov/sites/default/files/94755_III.pdf
  4. Hobson v. Wilson, 556 F. Supp. 1157, 1163 (D.D.C. 1982).
  5. Just to give out-of-town readers a sense of change over Anne’s career, the Brooklyn Navy Yard presently includes the largest movie studio outside of Hollywood; a large number of innovative tech start-ups, and a Wegman’s Supermarket.
  6. 866 F.2d 22 (2d Cir. 1989).
  7. Id. at 22.
  8. 18 F.3d 1017 (2d Cir. 1994).
  9. Id. at 1028-29.
  10. Id. at 1029.
  11. 17 F.3d 33 (2d Cir. 1994).
  12. 43 F.3d 1285 (9th Cir. 1994).
  13. Id. at 1291.
  14. 251 F.3d 44 (2d Cir. 2001).
  15. 331 F.3d 297 (2d Cir. 2003).
  16. 435 F.3d 146 (2d Cir. 2006).
  17. Id. at 150.

Copyright 2023 Jeffrey S. Chase. All rights reserved. Republished by permission.

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Congratulations, Anne, on an amazing career — one that continues on in a different role! You are what real leadership and courage are all about! 

Building a better America, “case by case, person by person.” I used to say that to folks in court during my days on the bench. It was a “team effort” that included everyone in the courtroom.

Also, thanks to Jeffrey for such a moving and elegantly written portrait of a real American patriot. Giving thanks and recognizing those who have “paved the way” and supported our common values and ideals is an oft-overlooked value in and of itself.

The Biden Administration and Dems generally are notoriously bad in this area. That’s particularly and painfully evident when it comes to those who “held the line” on our Constitution, democracy, and human rights — at a time when many of those leaders and politicos who would benefit were nowhere to be found “in the trenches” of defending and promoting social justice in the face of the Trump/GOP onslaught.

This is my favorite quote from Jeffrey’s profile of Anne:

“I never expected it to take so long for our government to wake up to what was happening in Central America, and to stop funding militaries and wars, and stop blaming immigrants for trying to save their own lives….Thirty years later, I’m no longer so optimistic, I don’t expect people here to learn from history anymore. Of course, you never stop hoping they will, when the lessons are so obvious.”

Clearly, Biden, Harris, Mayorkas, Garland, a number of Dem politicos, Federal Judges at all levels, and many members of the so-called “mainstream media” neither learned nor heeded the obvious lessons of history. They also ignored the law in their disgraceful “rush to reject rather than protect!”

They keep “blaming the victims” for saving their own lives, ignoring our nation’s failure to live up to our humanitarian commitments, and violating our statutes and Constitutional guarantees of the right to apply for asylum and receive a fair adjudication of claims. It’s as if World War II, Hitler, the Holocaust, and its aftermath  have been “written out” of our history — mainly by the GOP but also disturbingly by some Democrats and members of the Biden Administration.

Also, many congratulations to “rising NDPA superstar” Heather Axford on her appointment as the new Director of CALA! Heather has already “creamed” the DOJ in the notable case of Hernandez-Chacon v. Barr. See, e.g., https://wp.me/p8eeJm-52n. That case is basically a compendium of why EOIR is failing, both legally and operationally. 

Heather Axford
Heather Axford
Director
Central American Legal Assistance
Brooklyn, NY

Yet, disgracefully, rather than “tapping into” the expertise and organizational talents of Heather, Anne, and their NDPA colleagues, Garland and his team are presiding over the “death spiral” of EOIR — endangering our entire U.S. justice system and threatening and degrading human lives!

I’m proud to say that Heather “got her start” practicing before the “Legacy” Arlington Immigration Court with the Law Offices of Alan M. Parra following her graduation from UVA Law! I know that Heather will carry on and build upon Anne’s humanitarian legal legacy and leadership example at CALA!

🇺🇸 Due Process Forever!

PWS

02-19-23

  

⚖️ TWO MORE CAT REMANDS FROM 2D CIR. 

Dan Kowalski
Dan Kowalski
Online Editor of the LexisNexis Immigration Law Community (ILC)

Dan Kowalski reports for LexisNexis Immigration Community:

https://www.lexisnexis.com/LegalNewsRoom/immigration/b/insidenews/posts/ca2-on-cat-honduras-garcia-aranda-v-garland#

CA2 on CAT, Honduras: Garcia-Aranda v. Garland

Garcia-Aranda v. Garland

“Karla Iveth Garcia-Aranda petitions for review of two decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”) denying asylum, withholding of removal, and relief under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). Garcia-Aranda, a native and citizen of Honduras, testified before an Immigration Judge (“IJ”) that she and her family had been threatened, kidnapped, and beaten by members of the Mara 18 gang while a local Honduran police officer was present. Garcia-Aranda sought asylum and withholding of removal, arguing that the gang had persecuted her because she was a member of the Valerio family, which ran its own drug trafficking ring in Garcia-Aranda’s hometown. She also sought protection under CAT based on an asserted likelihood of future torture at the hands of the gang with the participation or acquiescence of the local Honduran police. Having reviewed both the IJ’s and the BIA’s opinions, we hold that the agency did not err in finding that Garcia-Aranda failed to satisfy her burden of proof for asylum and withholding of removal, but that the agency applied incorrect standards when adjudicating Garcia-Aranda’s CAT claim. Accordingly, the petition for review is DENIED IN PART and GRANTED IN PART, the decisions of the BIA are VACATED IN PART to the extent they denied Garcia-Aranda’s claim for CAT protection, and the case is REMANDED to the BIA for further proceedings consistent with this decision. … Because of these legal errors, we grant the petition as to Garcia-Aranda’s claim for protection under CAT and vacate the BIA’s decisions regarding CAT protection. See Rafiq v. Gonzales, 468 F.3d 165, 166–67 (2d Cir. 2006) (remanding a CAT claim for proper application of Khouzam). On remand, we direct the agency to consider, in light of all testimony and documentary evidence, whether Garcia-Aranda will more likely than not be tortured by, or at the instigation of, or with the consent or acquiescence of, any public official (or other person) acting under color of law. As more fully described above, that means considering questions such as whether it is more likely than not that the gang will torture Garcia-Aranda, including meeting all the harm requirements for torture under section 1208.18(a), and whether it is more likely than not that local police acting under color of law will themselves participate in those likely gang actions or acquiesce in those likely gang actions. The BIA is also instructed to remand to the IJ for any additional factfinding that is necessary for the BIA to make its determination.”

[NOTE: This PFR was filed in 2018!  Hats off to Heather Axford and team!]

Heather Axford
Heather Axford
Senior Staff Attorney
Central American Legal Assistance
Brooklyn, NY

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https://www.ca2.uscourts.gov/decisions/isysquery/460814d0-f0ab-44e7-aa08-3e5c9842322a/3/doc/19-228_so.pdf

Lopez De Velasquez v. Garland

“Petition for review of a December 26, 2018 decision of the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”) vacating a July 27, 2017 decision of an Immigration Judge (“IJ”) granting Petitioners’ application for asylum and protection under the Convention Against Torture (“CAT”). UPON DUE CONSIDERATION, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, ADJUDGED, AND DECREED that the petition for review is GRANTED in part and DENIED in part. Accordingly, the decision of the BIA is VACATED in part, and the case is REMANDED for proceedings consistent with this summary order. … Remand is required in this case because the BIA did not give consideration to all relevant evidence and principles of law, as those have been detailed by this Court’s recent decision in Scarlett v. Barr, 957 F.3d 316, 332–36 (2d Cir. 2020). … Because Mejia did not fear torture at the hands of the Guatemalan authorities, the relevant inquiry is whether government officials have acquiesced in likely third-party torture. To make this determination, the Court considers whether there is evidence that authorities knew of the torture or turned a blind eye to it, and “thereafter” breached their “responsibility to prevent” the possible torture. Scarlett, 957 F.3d at 334 (quoting Khouzam v. Ashcroft, 361 F.3d 161, 171 (2d Cir. 2004)); see 8 C.F.R. § 1208.18(a)(7). … Here, record evidence raises questions as to the Guatemalan government’s inability to protect Mejia, insofar as it indicates that Mejia sought assistance from Guatemalan police and was told that they could not protect her and she should simply hide in her home. … Insofar as the BIA ruled without the benefit of Scarlett, a remand is warranted before this Court conducts any review. We therefore remand for the sole purpose of allowing the BIA to decide, after reasoned consideration of the record, whether the Guatemalan police’s inability to protect Mejia constituted acquiescence.”

[Hats off to Mike Usher!]

Mikhail Usher, Esq. Senior Partner
Mikhail Usher, Esq.
Senior Partner
The Usher Law Group PLLC
My & New Jersey
PHOTO: Usher Law Group


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Congrats to NDPA superstars Heather and Mike!

Here’s commentary from my Round Table colleague Hon. “Sir Jeffrey” Chase on Heather’s performance on Garcia-Aranda v. Garland:

“Heather is a remarkable litigator who did a remarkable job on this case – it was a tough panel that had basically ruled out asylum from the start; it was most impressive to hear Heather persuade the judges over the course of oral arguments as to the CAT standard (during which one of the judges repeatedly referenced proposed Trump regs that had never taken effect, but were nevertheless listed on the government’s eCFR as if it had).

Best, Jeff“

And, here’s my response:

“Heather is truly an NDPA superstar. And, I’m proud that she got her start appearing at the Arlington Immigration Court!

DPF

P”

🇺🇸 Due Process Forever!

PWS

11-27-22

🇺🇸🗽⚖️😎🌟🏆NDPA SUPERSTAR LAUREN WYATT WINS AWARD!

Lauren Wyatt Award
NY City Bar
Legal Services Award
Lauren Wyatt
Lauren Wyatt
Lauren Wyatt, Esquire
Managing Attorney
Catholic Charities Community Services, Archdiocese of New York
PHOTO: VERA Institute of Justice

Lauren Wyatt

Lauren Wyatt is an attorney with Catholic Charities Community Services, Archdiocese of New York, where she provides direct representation to immigrants before the Immigration Court, Board of Immigration Appeals, USCIS, and New York family courts. As the Lead Project Attorney for the Immigration Court Helpdesk (ICH), she coordinates pro se application workshops, Know-Your-Rights presentations, legal screenings, and pro bono case placements for unrepresented immigrants in removal proceedings. She also prepares and supervises the implementation of specialized ICH programming in response to emergencies (such as family separation) and changes in law and policy (such as in domestic violence- and family-based asylum claims) She recruits and trains volunteers to provide free legal information and assistance to low-income immigrants. She also supervises and mentors pro bono volunteer attorneys in representing clients before the Immigration Court.

Prior to joining Catholic Charities, Lauren was a Program Associate at the Vera Institute of Justice administering the Legal Orientation Program for detained immigrants. Before moving to New York City, Lauren was an Equal Justice Works AmeriCorps Fellow at Catholic Charities Archdiocese of Washington. At Catholic Charities DC, she represented unaccompanied children in immigration and state court proceedings, as well as in affirmative applications before USCIS. She also trained and mentored pro bono attorneys to represent clients in immigration and family court cases.

Lauren is licensed to practice in New York and Maryland, as well as before the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York. She earned her J.D. from Howard University School of Law in 2014, and her B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania in 2010. She has studied in Seville, Spain, Buenos Aires, Argentina, and Havana, Cuba. She is fluent in Spanish and conversational in Italian.

SOURCE: I-ARC
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Congrats, Lauren!😎👍🏼

As we can see, eight years out of law school, Lauren has basically “done it all!” When are we going to see Lauren on the Federal Bench?
Like Vice President Kamala Harris, Lauren is a distinguished grad of Howard Law! So, why hasn’t Harris actively recruited her for a judicial or senior management position at EOIR, where due process, racial justice, practical problem solving, and a positive attitude toward human rights are in total tatters and need “big time” change and redirection?
Why are Dems blowing the opportunity to recognize, promote, and empower “the best and the brightest” that the “upcoming generation” of American lawyers has to offer?

Why is EOIR still a “due process wasteland” rather than a model, due process focused, best practices oriented, “progressive judiciary of the future?”

Somebody with some “pipelines” into the Biden Administration should be asking these questions and insisting on positive progressive actions!

🇺🇸Due Process Forever!

PWS
05-27-22

😴NQRFPT: After A Year Of “Blowing Off” Recs Of Progressive Experts, Garland’s Dysfunctional Courts Appear Shockingly Unprepared To Handle Influx Of Kids!🆘 — Mike LaSusa Reports for Law360 Quoting Me, Among Others!

NQRFPT = “Not Quite Ready For Prime Time” — Unfortunately, it’s a more than apt descriptor for the Biden Administration’s overall inept and tone-deaf approach to due process and immigrants’ rights in the beyond dysfunctional and unjust “Immigration Courts” under EOIR @ Garalnd’s DOJ.

Mike LaSusa
Mike LaSusa
Legal and Natioanl Security Reporter
Law369
PHOTO: Twitter

Influx Of Solo Kids Poses Challenge For Immigration Courts

By Mike LaSusa

Law360 (March 31, 2022, 2:44 PM EDT) — Unaccompanied minors arriving in increasing numbers at the southern U.S. border are likely to face a tough time finding legal representation and navigating an overwhelmed immigration court system that has no special procedures for handling their cases.

The number of unaccompanied children encountered by U.S. Customs and Border Protection has risen sharply over the past year, to an average of more than 10,000 per month, according to CBP data. Those kids’ cases often end up in immigration court, where they are subject to the exact same treatment as adults, no matter their age.

“Nobody really thought of this when the laws were enacted,” said retired Immigration Judge Paul Wickham Schmidt, now an adjunct professor at Georgetown Law. “Everything dealing with kids is kind of an add-on,” he said, referring to special dockets for minors and other initiatives that aren’t expressly laid out in the law but have been tried in various courts over the years.

About a third of the immigration court cases started since October involve people under 18, and of those people, 40% are 4 or under, according to recent statistics from the U.S. Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review, which operates the courts.

It’s unclear how many of those cases involve unaccompanied children and how many involve kids with adult relatives, and it’s hard to make historical comparisons because of changes in how the EOIR has tracked data on kids’ cases over the years.

But kids’ cases are indeed making up an increasing share of immigration court dockets, according to Jennifer Podkul, vice president of policy and advocacy for Kids in Need of Defense, or KIND, one of the main providers of legal services for migrant kids in the U.S.

“The cases are taking a lot longer because the backlog has increased so much,” Podkul said. Amid the crush of cases, attorneys can be hard to find.

. . . .

The immigration courts should consider “getting some real juvenile judges who actually understand asylum law and have real special training, not just a few hours of canned training, to deal with kids,” said Schmidt, the former immigration judge.

. . . .

***************************

Those with Law360 access can read Mike’s complete article at the link.

For what seems to be the millionth time with Garland, it’s not “rocket science.”🚀 He should have brought in Jen Podkul, her “boss,” Wendy Young of KIND, or a similar qualified leader from outside Government, to kick tail, roll some heads, clean out the deadwood, and set up a “Juvenile Division” of the Immigration Court staffed with well-qualified “real” judges, experts in asylum law, SIJ status, U & T visas, PD, and due process for vulnerable populations. 

Such judicial talent is out there. But, that’s the problem with Garland! The judicial and leadership talent remain largely “out there” while lesser qualified individuals continue to botch cases and screw up the justice system on a regular basis! Actions have consequences; so do inactions and failure to act decisively and courageously.

And, of course, Garland should have replaced the BIA with real judges — progressive practical scholars who wouldn’t tolerate some of the garbage inflicted on kids by the current out of control, undisciplined, “enforcement biased,” anti-immigrant EOIR system. 

Instead, Garland employs Miller “restrictionist enforcement guru” Tracy Short as his “Chief Immigration Judge” and another “Miller holdover” David Wetmore as BIA Chair. No immigration expert in America would deem either of these guys capable or qualified to insure due process for kids (or, for that matter anyone else) in Immgration Court. 

Yet, more than a year into the Biden Administration, there they are! It’s almost as if Stephen Miller just moved over to DOJ to join his buddy Gene Hamilton in abusing immigrants in Immigration Court. (Technically, Hamilton is gone, but it would be hard to tell from the way Garland and his equally tone-deaf lieutenants have messed up EOIR. Currently, he and Miller are officers of “America First Legal” a neo-fascist group engaged in “aiming to reinstate Trump-era policies that bar unaccompanied migrant children from entering the United States,” according to Wikipedia.)

Meanwhile, the folks with the expertise to solve problems and get the Immigration Courts back on track, like Jen & Wendy, are giving interviews and trying to fix Garland’s ungodly mess from the outside! What’s wrong with this picture? What’s wrong with this Administration?

We’re about to find out! Big time, as Garland’s broken, due-process denying “court” system continues it’s “death spiral,” ☠️ taking lots of kids and other human lives down with it!

🇺🇸Due Process Forever!

PWS

04-01-22

SENSELESS TRAGEDY: PROMINENT NY LAWYER & FEARLESS CHINA PRO-DEMOCRACY ADVOCATE JIM LI SLAIN IN OFFICE! — Disgruntled Client Arrested! — Jim Was UW Law Grad & Packer Fan

Jim Li
Jim Li, ESQUIRE
1955-2022
Human Rights Advocate
PHOTO: Jim Li & Associates

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/15/nyregion/jim-li-stabbing-death.html?action=click&algo=bandit-all-surfaces-time-cutoff-30_impression_cut_3_filter_new_arm_5_1&alpha=0.05&block=more_in_recirc&fellback=false&imp_id=175777447&impression_id=a3511a81-a4b5-11ec-aa2e-ab56a298a7a3&index=1&pgtype=Article&pool=more_in_pools/newyork&region=footer&req_id=757398693&surface=eos-more-in&variant=0_bandit-all-surfaces-time-cutoff-30_impression_cut_3_filter_new_arm_5_1

Jonah E. Bromwich reports for NY Times:

. . . .

Mr. Li was born on Sept. 7, 1955, in Wuhan and joined the Chinese Army at the age of 15, said his friend Mr. Zhu. He then worked as a policeman and studied at a university in Wuhan, where he focused on law. He majored in constitutional law at Beijing University, graduating in 1985. After working as a professor in Wuhan, he returned to Beijing for his doctorate, where he had a high place in the student government.

“Usually people at that level means they have a very bright future with the government and with the party,” said Jianzhong Gu, a longtime friend of Mr. Li’s. “But Jim Li was not working in that way. He had his own ideas.”

Mr. Li was a doctoral student in 1989 when the Tiananmen Square protests began with thousands demonstrating against the Chinese Communist Party, criticizing corruption and calling for democratic freedoms. He served as a legal adviser to the Beijing Workers Autonomous Federation, the key organization of workers that aligned itself with the students seeking freedom.

He was interrogated a number of times while detained at Qincheng Prison, but told friends and colleagues that he had never cooperated.

In the United States, after his studies at Columbia, he initially struggled, telling a newspaper at the time that he was unable to find work in a law firm because of his shaky English. He considered working in a restaurant.

But soon afterward, he was able to attend the law school at the University of Wisconsin, where he became a fan of the Green Bay Packers.

In New York, he helped clients gain admission to the United States and devoted himself to pro-democracy programs, his friends said. He was one of the lawyers who represented Zhou Yongjun, a student leader in the Tiananmen Square movement who was detained by the Chinese authorities in 2008 and charged with fraud. He fought against the Chinese government’s practice of using Interpol red notices to apprehend political opponents. And he worked with many clients, including Ms. Zhang, pro bono, Mr. Zhu and Mr. Lebenger said.

“He helped a lot of Chinese people who had the experience of being persecuted by the Chinese government,” Mr. Gu said.

Mr. Lebenger said that Mr. Li had hoped to do less legal work so he could devote more time to his pro-democracy activities, to reading, writing and activism. “If I did anything worthwhile, it was freeing Jim up to do more of that work,” he said.

Kirsten Noyes contributed research.

Jonah E. Bromwich covers criminal justice in New York, with a focus on the Manhattan district attorney’s office, state criminal courts in Manhattan and New York City’s jails.

During his time on Metro, Mr. Bromwich has covered investigations into former president Donald J. Trump and his family business, the fall of New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the crisis at the jail complex on Rikers Island, among other topics. @jonesieman

**************************

What a senseless tragedy! A life well and courageously lived cut short! Rest In Peace, Jim. You will be missed, but your legacy of courage, compassion, and standing up for the human rights of others will live on and continue to inspire the NDPA!

🇺🇸Due Process Forever!

PWS

03-16-21

😎👍🏼⚖️🗽MORE TIMELY NDPA ASYLUM TRAINING — Feb. 25-26 — Register Now!

Jeffrey S. Chase
Hon. Jeffrey S. Chase
Jeffrey S. Chase Blog
Coordinator & Chief Spokesperson, Round Table of Former Immigration Judges
Hon. Susan G. Roy
Hon. Susan G. Roy
Law Office of Susan G. Roy, LLC
Princeton Junction, NJ
Member, Round Table of Former Immigration Judges

More NDPA Training:  Tomorrow and Saturday, the New York Asylum and Immigration Law Conference will be held virtually; Sue Roy and I are among the speakers, along with many other members of the NDPA.

Here is the link:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/2022-annual-new-york-asylum-immigration-conference-tickets-233964222287

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Here’s the full agenda with the impressive list of speakers:

2022 Asylum Conference Agenda_FINAL (Zoom Links & Dropbox Link)

Garland’s head will be spinning 😵‍💫 by the time the NDPA gets finished with him and his failing “courts!”

Thanks for passing this along, Sir Jeffrey!

🇺🇸Due Process Forever!

PWS

02-24-22

THE GIBSON REPORT — 02-14-21💝 — Compiled By Elizabeth Gibson, Esquire, NY Legal Assistance Group — Mandatory E-Filing @ EOIR Starts & Lots Of Other “Interesting Stuff!”  — CMS Study Shows How Garland Is Ignoring the “Low Hanging Fruit” On His Out of Control EOIR Backlog! ☹️

Elizabeth Gibson
Elizabeth Gibson
Attorney, NY Legal Assistance Group
Publisher of “The Gibson Report”

PRACTICE ALERTS

 

Mandatory E-Filing with EOIR Is Now in Effect

Efiling is not permitted for cases with a preexisting paper file, but all new cases moving forward require efiling with ECAS.

Once a case is fully ECAS, you do not need to serve ICE separately. However, you still need to submit a certificate of service that lists ECAS as the means of service. eService/mail can still be used on paper files. eService is the only method of filing for PD requests.

Also, EOIR apparently has not come up with a system for filing motions to substitute counsel in ECAS. The system physically will not let you file a new primary E-28 if there already is an attorney, and you cannot file a motion without an E-28. The workaround so far has been to file a non-primary E-28 and then to ask the court to change it to primary. Hopefully, EOIR will fix this soon.

 

Updated Legal Assistant Directories for NYC (attached)

 

NEWS

 

U.S. to try house arrest for immigrants as alternative to detention

Reuters: The Biden administration will place hundreds of migrants caught at the U.S.-Mexico border on house arrest in the coming weeks as it seeks cheaper alternatives to immigration detention, according to a notice to lawmakers and a U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official. A 120-day pilot program will be launched in Houston and Baltimore, with 100-200 single adults enrolled in each location, according to the notice, which was sent by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and reviewed by Reuters. See also Immigrant Rights Organizations Call on Biden to Stop Expansion of Surveillance and End the Immigration Detention System as a Whole.

 

The Continuing Impact of The Pandemic on Immigration Court Case Completions

TRAC: As of the end of January 2022, the pace of Immigration Court work continues to lag as a result of the pandemic. There have been not only fewer case completions, but the average time required to dispose of each case has doubled since before the pandemic began.

 

Nationwide Labor Pause Planned In ‘Day Without Immigrants’ Protest

LAA Weekly: Valentine’s Day has been strategically selected for the “Day Without Immigrants” protest, as it is a day where an abundance of consumer spending occurs, through labor that is often carried out by immigrants.

 

Quick Fix to Help Overwhelmed Border Officials Has Left Migrants in Limbo

NYT: These migrants were instructed to register with Immigrations and Customs Enforcement within 60 days to complete the process the border officials started. But in some parts of the country, local ICE offices were overwhelmed and unable to give them appointments. So the Haitian family and other new arrivals have spent months trying in vain to check in with ICE and initiate their court cases.

 

US citizenship agency reverts to welcoming mission statement

AP: The new statement unveiled Wednesday by Citizenship and Immigration Services Director Ur Jaddou is symbolic but somewhat restores previous language after the agency removed a reference in 2018 to the U.S. being a “nation of immigrants.”

 

Salvadoran Denied Naturalization Over Pot Dispensary Job

Law360: A Washington federal judge has ruled that a Salvadoran citizen’s U.S. naturalization application was properly denied because of her admission that she distributes marijuana as co-owner of a state-licensed dispensary.

 

EOIR Apologizes After Asking Atty To Delete Tweets

Law360: The U.S. Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review apologized on Tuesday to an attorney after asking her to delete tweets about immigration court hearings for people enrolled in the controversial “Remain in Mexico” program.

 

Undocumented parents have weathered a pandemic with no safety net

WaPo: A patchwork of federal aid kept many families afloat during the pandemic, but families with undocumented parents did not qualify for most of it, including unemployment insurance, the stimulus payments, Medicaid and food stamps.

 

LITIGATION/CASELAW/RULES/MEMOS

 

AO issues NOID for Afghan Who Worked for U.S.

Boston AO: A NOID from the asylum office stated that an individual who worked for the U.S. government as a mechanic had not demonstrated a fear of future persecution based on his imputed political opinion. The AO held there was insufficient evidence the Taliban was or would become aware of his imputed political option. The AO also stated the Taliban does not have the capability to persecute all former employees of the U.S. and the applicant had not demonstrated similarly situated people were being targeted. Counsel has submitted a detailed rebuttal with testimony from a US military official, and the applicant’s mother was granted asylum by a different officer.

 

District Court Vacates Two Trump Administration Asylum EAD Rules

AILA: A federal district court vacated the final rules “Removal of 30-day Processing Provision for Asylum Applicant-Related Form I-765 Employment Authorization Applications” and “Asylum Application, Interview, and Employment Authorization for Applicants.” (AsylumWorks v. Mayorkas, 2/7/22)

 

Lawsuit against the BIA Levels the Legal Playing Field for Immigrant Advocates

NYLAG: Under the settlement, the Board will be required to place nearly all its opinions into an online reading room, accessible to all in perpetuity, ensuring that immigration advocates will have access to these opinions within six months of when they are issued. The Board also must post its decisions dating back to 2017 as well as some from 2016. Posting will begin in October 2022 and will be phased in over several years.

 

2nd Circ. Says BIA Undercuts Precedent In Asylum Case

Law360: The Second Circuit on Wednesday granted a Nigerian man’s petition for review of a Board of Immigration Appeals order that denied him asylum, finding that the agency made several legal and procedural errors and did not adequately explain its reasons.

 

3rd Circ. Says Nigerian Paroled Into US Wasn’t ‘Admitted’

Law360: The federal government properly charged a Nigerian man as inadmissible to the U.S. rather than removable, because his entry to the country on parole constituted an arrival despite his previous admission, the Third Circuit ruled Friday.

 

CA6 on U Visa Waitlisting: Barrios Garcia v. DHS

Lexis: We hold that § 706(1) allows the federal courts to command USCIS to hasten an unduly delayed “bona fide” determination, which is a mandatory decision under 8 U.S.C. § 1184(p)(6) and the BFD process. We hold, however, that the federal courts cannot invoke 5 U.S.C. § 706(1) to force USCIS to speed up an unduly delayed pre-waitlist work-authorization adjudication, which is a nonmandatory agency action under 8 U.S.C. § 1184(p)(6) and the BFD process. We hold that Plaintiffs have sufficiently pleaded that USCIS has unreasonably delayed the principal petitioners’ placement on the U-visa waitlist.

 

9th Circ. Finds Part Of Immigration Law Unconstitutional

Law360: The Ninth Circuit invalidated the subsection of a law that makes it a crime to encourage unlawful immigration, ruling Thursday it is overbroad and covers speech that is protected by the First Amendment.

 

9th Circ. Rejects Mexican Kidnapping Victim’s Protection Bid

Law360: The Board of Immigration Appeals need only to consider the possibility — not the reasonableness — of an immigrant’s safe relocation back to their home region when weighing protections under the Convention Against Torture, the Ninth Circuit ruled Wednesday.

 

USCIS, Immigrants Get Approval To Bar Juvenile Policy In NJ

Law360: A New Jersey federal judge signed off Wednesday on a class action settlement that would prevent the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services from refusing to place young immigrants on the path to a green card based on Garden State family court findings.

 

Foreign Spouses May Work With Feds’ Approval At Border

Law360: U.S. Customs and Border Protection is marking the entry records of certain foreign executives’ spouses to show that they are immediately eligible to work in the U.S. without going through the monthslong process of obtaining a work permit.

 

EOIR to Close Fishkill Immigration Court

AILA: EOIR will close the Fishkill Immigration Court due to the closure of the Downstate Correctional Facility in which the court is located. Holding hearings at the location will cease at close of business on February 17, 2022. Pending cases at time of closure will transfer to Ulster Immigration Court.

 

EOIR Clarifies Alternative Filing Locations

AILA: EOIR updated its Operation Status website with information clarifying that alternate filing locations are designated for the purpose of filing emergency motions and explaining how it will treat other filings if a court is closed.

 

USCIS Issues Updated Policy Guidance Addressing VAWA Petitions

AILA: USCIS updated policy guidance addressing VAWA petitions, specifically changing the interpretation of the requirement for shared residence. The guidance also affects use of INA 204(a)(2), implements the decisions in Da Silva v. Attorney General and Arguijo v. United States, and more.

 

DHS and VA Launch New Online Resources for Noncitizen Service Members, Veterans, and Their Families

AILA: DHS, in partnership with the Department of Veterans Affairs and Defense, launched an online center to consolidate resources for noncitizen service members, veterans, and their families, including a request form for current or former service members seeking return to the U.S. after deportation.

 

USCIS Updates Policy Guidance on VAWA Self-Petitions

USCIS: We are updating our interpretation of the requirement for shared residence to occur during the qualifying spousal or parent-child relationship. Instead, the self-petitioner must demonstrate that they are residing or have resided with the abuser at any time in the past.

We are also implementing nationwide the decisions in Da Silva v. Attorney General, 948 F.3d 629 (3rd Cir. 2020), and Arguijo v. United States, 991 F.3d 736 (7th Cir. 2021). Da Silva v. Attorney General held that when evaluating the good moral character requirement, an act or conviction is “connected to” the battery or extreme cruelty when it has “a causal or logical relationship.” Arguijo v. USCIS allows stepchildren and stepparents to continue to be eligible for VAWA self-petitions even if the parent and stepparent divorced.

 

RESOURCES

 

 

EVENTS

 

 

ImmProf

 

Monday, February 14, 2022

Sunday, February 13, 2022

Saturday, February 12, 2022

Friday, February 11, 2022

Thursday, February 10, 2022

Wednesday, February 9, 2022

Tuesday, February 8, 2022

Monday, February 7, 2022

 

 

 

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After two plus decades of largely wasted time, effort, and resources, EOIR finally moves into the era of E-Filing! 

Elizabeth notes one of the “initial workarounds” for motions to substitute counsel. While early glitches are to be expected in any system, this one seems odd because: 1) the system has supposedly been extensively “beta tested;” and 2) motions to substitute counsel have to be one of the most common motions filed at EOIR (particularly with cases often taking many years to complete with the ever-growing 1.6 million case backlog.)

I’d be interested in getting any “practitioner feedback” on how this system (applicable only to newly filed NTAs) is working out for them. You can just put in the “comments box” for this post.

Speaking of backlog, this excellent recent study and analysis from CMS (under “Friday Feb. 11” above) certainly suggests that the majority of the “aged cases” being “warehoused” by Garland’s EOIR relate to law-abiding long-term residents who are already firmly grounded in our society and should be prime candidates for “non-priority” status and removal from the dockets. 

Undocumented immigrants contribute to every aspect of the nation’s life.16 During the COVID-19 pandemic, the case for legalization has become increasingly evident to the public and policymakers due, in part, to the fact that a remarkable 74 percent of the nation’s 7.3 million undocumented workers meet DHS’s definition of essential workers (Kerwin and Warren 2020). As the nation ages and its population over age 65 exceeds that under age 15 (Chamie 2021), the need for immigrant workers will only increase. US fertility rates fell for five consecutive years prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the US birth rate decreased by four percent in 2020 (Barroso 2021).17

Legalization programs benefit the larger society: they “raise wages, increase consumption, create jobs, and generate additional tax revenue” (Hinojosa-Ojeda 2012, 191).18 One study has estimated that broad immigration reform legislation, including a legalization program and a flexible, rights-respecting, legal immigration system, would add $1.5 trillion to the US gross domestic product over 10 years (ibid., 176). Another study found that a legalization program would increase the productivity, earnings, and taxes paid by the legalized, resulting in increased contributions to the Social Security (SS) program, which would more than offset the SS benefits that they would receive (Kugler, Lynch and Oakford 2013).

Indeed, the data in the CMS study confirms what many of us have suspected for a long time: That deportation of many of the individuals now occupying the Immigration Court’s mind-boggling docket backlog actually would be a counterproductive “net loss” for the U.S.!

So, why are Garland and Mayorkas letting the backlog fester and ooze disorder and injustice? ☠️ Rather than using largely self-created backlogs to support more “enforcement gimmicks” purporting to lead to the forced removal of many productive members of our society, EOIR is long overdue for some form of the “Chen Markowitz Plan” in anticipation of the types of ameliorative legislation outlined in the CMS study.  

Ready to Stay: A Comprehensive Analysis of the US Foreign-Born Populations Eligible for Special Legal Status Programs and for Legalization under Pending Bills by Donald Kerwin, José Pacas, Robert Warren

https://immigrationcourtside.com/2021/02/04/its-not-rocket-science-%f0%9f%9a%80-greg-chen-professor-peter-markowitz-can-cut-the-immigration-court-backlog-in-half-immediately-with-no-additional-resources-and/

Donald M. Kerwin
Donald M. Kerwin
Executive Director
Center for Migration Studies — He and his friends at CMS have some great ideas on immigration and human rights backed by some of the best scholarship around! Why are Garland, Mayorkas, and others “tuning them out” while they continue to bungle immigration policy, degrade human rights, and undermine our legal system?

Garland’s disgraceful failure to put a “Progressive A-Team” in charge at EOIR continues to drag down our entire justice system.

Note that Sessions and Barr had no trouble and no hesitation installing their “Miller Time” restrictionist team at DOJ and EOIR despite almost universal outrage and protests from human rights advocates, immigration experts, and some legislators! 

Why do Dems keep appointing AG’s who are too “tone deaf,” clueless, and timid to fully “leverage” the almost unlimited potential of reforming EOIR to be a font of due process, best practices, and scholarly,  efficient judging?

Why do Dems prefer the equal and racial justice “disaster zone” that they have helped to create, aided, and abetted over the past two decades of abject failure and disorder at EOIR?

There is a reason why Chair Lofgren and others on the Hill are pushing for Article I! But, that in no way diminishes or excuses the failure of Garland to make available due process and best practices reforms at EOIR, including a major shakeup of “Trump holdover” judges and managers who aren’t up to the job of running a system “laser-focused” on due process and fundamental fairness!

🇺🇸 Due Process Forever!

PWS

02-15-22

⚖️🗽NDPA OPPORTUNITY: GET SMARTER FASTER AS YOU PREPARE TO BATTLE FOR DUE PROCESS IN AMERICA’S WORST COURT SYSTEM!

Professor Stephen Yale-Loehr
Professor Stephen Yale-Loehr
Cornell Law

Free NYSBA asylum training CLE webinar Dec. 13 1-2 pm ET

Are you considering handling your first pro bono asylum case, but unsure of how to proceed? This free one-hour CLE training sponsored by the New York State Bar Association will orient you to the fundamentals of asylum eligibility and procedure, common issues to consider, and mentorship possibilities. Handouts will be provided.

When: Monday December 13, 2021, 1-2 pm ET

Where: online

Speakers: Victoria Neilson (Managing Attorney, Catholic Legal Immigration Network), Rebecca Press (Legal Director, UnLocal, Inc.), and Steve Yale-Loehr (Cornell Law School)

MCLE credits: 1.0

Cost: free

Event link and registration: https://nysba.org/events/handling-your-first-pro-bono-asylum-case-2/

If you aren’t an NYSBA member, call 800-582-2452 to register.

The CLE will be recorded and available to people who register but can’t attend the live event.

Stephen Yale-Loehr

Professor of Immigration Law Practice, Cornell Law School

Faculty Director, Immigration Law and Policy Program

Faculty Fellow, Migrations Initiative

Co-director, Asylum Appeals Clinic

Co-Author, Immigration Law & Procedure Treatise

Of Counsel, Miller Mayer

Phone: 607-379-9707

e-mail: SWY1@cornell.edu

Twitter: @syaleloehr

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Thanks, Steve, my friend, for passing this on! I’m grateful for all you do to educate, guide, support, and most of all inspire the NDPA in the never-ending fight to force our Government to make due process and fundamental fairness for all persons in America, regardless of race, creed, or status, a reality rather than the cruel farce it is today!

Never has the need for talented pro bono representation in Immigration Court been greater. 

And, the Garland DOJ’s indifference to long overdue due process, quality control, personnel, and best practices reforms in the broken and backlogged EOIR system means that the battle to save lives and force change through aggressive litigation is just beginning and ultimately will succeed!

The good news: Given the endemic lack of expertise, discombobulated administration, and disregard for quality at EOIR, the “talent balance” favors the NDPA! Many deserving lives can be saved and at least some degree of accountability forced on Garland’s dysfunctional EOIR through aggressive, well prepared litigation that makes compelling records, advances correct interpretations and applications of the law, and resists and triumphs over the “race to the bottom” that has destroyed and perverted justice in our Immigration Courts. 

Sign up today! It will be the “best hour” you spend next week!

🇺🇸Due Process Forever!

PWS

12-07-21