THE GIBSON REPORT — 07-26-21 — Compiled By Elizabeth Gibson, Esquire, NY Legal Assistance Group

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

ALERTS

Note: Policies are rapidly changing, so please verify information with the government and colleagues.

 

New Phone Number for OPLA at 26 Federal Plaza:

26 Federal Plaza office is: 212-436-9100.

290 Broadway: 212-266-5100

201 Varick Street: 212-367-6334

Hudson Valley (Newburgh): 845-831-1576

General NYC:  duty-attorney.occ-nyc@ice.dhs.gov

Varick:  OPLA-NY-VARICK-DutyAttorney@ice.dhs.gov

Hudson Valley (Newburgh): OPLA-NY-IHV-DutyAttorney@ice.dhs.gov

 

NEWS

 

Biden says ‘remains to be seen’ if immigration measure part of wider budget bill

Reuters: U.S. President Joe Biden on Sunday said he remained adamant about the need to create a pathway for U.S. citizenship for so-called Dreamer immigrants, but it “remains to be seen” if that will be part of a $3.5 trillion budget measure.

 

Biden administration officials fear lifting Covid restrictions at border could trigger migrant surge

NBC: The public health order barring border migration, known as Title 42, has expelled back to Mexico almost 1 million immigrants trying to cross the southern border since the Trump administration put it in place in March 2020.

 

Pressure Is Building On Biden To Do More For Asylum-Seekers And Migrants

NPR: It’s against this backdrop that Biden is set to give remarks on Monday to the nation’s largest Latino advocacy organization, UnidosUS. But some of Biden’s supporters hope his speech is directed more broadly to the American people — particularly to swing voters who are concerned about migration yet recognize the value of immigrants in their communities, and not just his base.

 

Health care for older immigrants sees momentum among states

AP: Supporters say the trend is crucial during a coronavirus pandemic that has left immigrants, who are disproportionately essential workers, more vulnerable to COVID-19 and as federal remedies, like an immigration overhaul or “public option” health insurance, face tough political odds.

 

Special Report: Marooned in Matamoros

WaPo: Fleeing gang violence in El Salvador, Nancy and her two children sought asylum in the United States. Instead, they found themselves stuck in a border camp in Matamoros, Mexico — and the U.S. immigration system. Over the course of a year, in texts, voicemails and other dispatches from Matamoros, Nancy slowly unspooled her harrowing story.

 

LITIGATION/CASELAW/RULES/MEMOS

 

Matter of A-C-A-A-, 28 I&N Dec. 351 (A.G. 2021)

BIA: (1) Matter of A-C-A-A-, 28 I&N Dec. 84 (A.G. 2020) (“A-C-A-A- I”), is vacated in its entirety. Immigration judges and the Board should no longer follow A-C-A-A- I in pending or future cases and should conduct proceedings consistent with this opinion and the opinions in Matter of L-E-A-, 28 I&N Dec. 304 (A.G. 2021) (“L-E-A- III”), and Matter of A-B-, 28 I&N Dec. 307 (A.G. 2021) (“A-B- III”).

(2) The Board’s longstanding review practices that A-C-A-A- I apparently prohibited, including its case-by-case discretion to rely on immigration court stipulations, are restored.

 

BIA Finds IJs and the Board Lack Authority to Recognize the Equitable Defense of Laches in Removal Proceedings

The BIA found respondent did not submit sufficient objective evidence to support his fear of torture by the Rwandan government and that IJs and the Board lack the authority to recognize the equitable defense of laches in removal proceedings. Matter of O-R-E-, 28 I&N Dec. 330 (BIA 2021) AILA Doc. No. 21072233

 

CA3 Reverses Denial of CAT Relief Where IJ’s Decision Did Not Refer to Record Evidence

Where the IJ had failed to provide a citation or reference to the record in denying the petitioner’s Convention Against Torture (CAT) claim, the court found that the IJ’s decision was not supported by substantial evidence. (Valarezo-Tirado v. Att’y Gen., 7/15/21) AILA Doc. No. 21072137

 

CA5 Finds Petitioner’s Conviction in Texas for Delivering Cocaine Was Included in CSA

The court denied the petition for review, finding that the petitioner’s conviction in Texas for delivering cocaine under Texas Health and Safety Code §481.112 was included in the Controlled Substances Act (CSA). (Ochoa-Salgado v. Garland, 7/16/21) AILA Doc. No. 21072238

 

CA6 Finds BIA Correctly Determined That INA §241(a)(5) Precluded Reopening of Petitioner’s Removal Order

The court determined that the BIA correctly denied the petitioner’s motion to reopen, holding that the petitioner’s original removal order was not subject to being reopened because he had illegally reentered the United States pursuant to INA §241(a)(5). (Sanchez-Gonzalez v. Garland, 7/16/21) AILA Doc. No. 21072240

 

CA7 Upholds Finding That Petitioner with DUI Conviction Lacked Good Moral Character

The court upheld the BIA’s determination that petitioner was ineligible for cancellation of removal for lacking good moral character, where he had been convicted of drunk driving, had multiple vehicle-related traffic violations, and used a fake social security card. (Meza v. Garland, 7/20/21) AILA Doc. No. 21072605

 

CA8 Holds That Substitution of IJs Did Not Constitute a Violation of INA §240(c)(1)(A)

The court held that the issuance of the decision denying cancellation of removal to the petitioner by a different IJ than the one who had conducted the petitioner’s merits hearing did not violate his due process rights or the text of INA §240(c)(1)(A). (Orpinel-Robledo v. Garland, 7/19/21) AILA Doc. No. 21072331

 

CA8 Vacates BIA’s Decision Finding That Petitioner’s Conviction for Enticing a Minor in Iowa Was a “Crime of Child Abuse”

Where the BIA had held that the petitioner was removable because his conviction for enticing a minor in violation of Iowa Code §710.10(3) constituted a “crime of child abuse,” the court granted the petition for review, vacated the BIA’s decision, and remanded. (Pah Peh v. Garland, 7/16/21) AILA Doc. No. 21072330

 

CA9 Vacates Its Previous Decision Overturning Injunction Against Healthcare Insurance Proclamation

The court granted in part the plaintiffs’ motion to vacate its December 31, 2020, reversal of the district court’s injunction of the Healthcare Proclamation (PP 9945), and denied as moot the petition for rehearing en banc. (Doe #1, et al. v. Biden, et al., 7/16/21) AILA Doc. No. 21072334

 

CA9 Finds Substantial Evidence Supported BIA’s Implausibility Findings with Respect to Petitioners’ Testimony

Upholding the denial of asylum to petitioners, an Armenian family, the court held that substantial evidence supported the adverse credibility determination as to the husband based on implausibilities in the record, and as to the wife based on evasive testimony. (Lalayan v. Garland, 7/13/21) AILA Doc. No. 21072333

 

D.C. Circuit Finds DOS Acted Arbitrarily and Capriciously in Denying CLN

The court held that DOS has statutory authority to impose an in-person requirement to seek a certificate of loss of nationality (CLN), but found that the department acted arbitrarily and capriciously in denying the appellant a CLN. (Farrell v. Blinken, et al., 7/13/21) AILA Doc. No. 21072606

 

Calif. Judge Says Rescinded Visa Ban Moots Lawsuit

Law360: A California federal judge dismissed visa seekers’ legal challenge to a now-rescinded Trump-era order that blocked them from moving to the U.S. on new green cards, saying there was no longer a live controversy after the Biden White House ended the ban.

 

Advocates Reach Settlement with USCIS Over Blank Space Policy

Advocates reached a settlement after challenging USCIS policy to reject applications with a blank response field. USCIS will accept the original submission date as the filing date for the applications it has identified as having rejected pursuant to the policy. (Vangala v. USCIS, 7/19/21) AILA Doc. No. 20112034

 

US Drops 5 Visa Fraud Suits Against Chinese Scholars

Law360: The federal government on Thursday and Friday filed for the dismissal of five visa fraud suits against Chinese researchers accused of being a part of an orchestrated program by the Chinese government to send military scientists to the U.S.

 

CDC Order Fully Excepting Unaccompanied Children from Order Suspending Introduction of Persons through Land Ports of Entry

CDC notice of an order fully excepting unaccompanied children from the 10/13/20 “Order Suspending the Right to Introduce Certain Persons from Countries Where a Quarantinable Communicable Disease Exists.” The new order went into effect 7/16/21. (86 FR 38717, 7/22/21) AILA Doc. No. 21072140

 

DHS Notice of Extension and Redesignation of Somalia for TPS

DHS notice of Temporary Protected Status extension and redesignation of Somalia for 18 months, from 9/18/21 through 3/17/23. (86 FR 38744, 7/22/21) AILA Doc. No. 21072133

 

USCIS Announces TPS Applicants from Five Designated Countries Can Now File Initial Applications Online

USCIS announced that TPS applicants who are eligible nationals of Burma, Somalia, Syria, Venezuela or Yemen, or individuals without nationality who last habitually resided in one of those countries, can now file their initial Form I-821, Application for Temporary Protected Status, online. AILA Doc. No. 21072138

 

USCIS Issues Statement on DACA Court Decision in Texas v. United States

USCIS posted statements regarding the Texas v. United States decision, stating that DHS will continue to accept the filing of both initial and renewal DACA requests, as well as accompanying requests for employment authorization. AILA Doc. No. 21072031

 

USCIS Extends Flexibility for Responding to Certain Agency Requests

On June 24, 2021, USCIS extended the flexibilities it announced on March 30, 2020, for responding to certain agency requests. This flexibility applies if the issuance date listed on the request, notice, or decision is between March 1, 2020, and September 30, 2021, inclusive. AILA Doc. No. 20050133

 

RESOURCES

 

 

EVENTS

 

 

ImmProf

Monday, July 26, 2021

Sunday, July 25, 2021

Saturday, July 24, 2021

Friday, July 23, 2021

Thursday, July 22, 2021

Wednesday, July 21, 2021

Tuesday, July 20, 2021

Monday, July 19, 2021

 

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

Thanks, Elizabeth, for all you do!

🇺🇸DPF!

PWS

07-28-21

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