THE GIBSON REPORT 11-12-18—Compiled by Elizabeth Gibson, Esquire, NY Legal Assistance Group
TOP UPDATES
Trump signs proclamation blocking asylum seekers caught at the U.S.-Mexico border<https://www.politico.com/story/2018/11/09/trump-order-migrants-asylum-956717>
Politico: The ban will last 90 days or until the U.S. strikes a “safe third country” asylum deal with Mexico, according to the text of the proclamation…Migrants arrested between ports of entry will still be able to apply for humanitarian relief through other legal avenues, such as “withholding of removal” or protection under the Convention Against Torture.
* Withholding of Removal and the U.N. Convention Against Torture-No Substitute for Asylum, Putting Refugees at Risk<https://www.humanrightsfirst.org/resource/withholding-removal-and-un-convention-against-torture-no-substitute-asylum-putting-refugees>
* Proclamation<https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/presidential-proclamation-addressing-mass-migration-southern-border-united-states/> and Rule<https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2018/11/09/2018-24594/aliens-subject-to-a-bar-on-entry-under-certain-presidential-proclamations-procedures-for-protection>
* Secretary Kirstjen M. Nielsen, Acting Attorney General Matthew G. Whitaker Statement on DHS-DOJ Asylum Regulation<https://www.dhs.gov/news/2018/11/08/secretary-kirstjen-m-nielsen-acting-attorney-general-matthew-g-whitaker-statement>
* Acting Attorney General Whitaker Statement On Presidential Proclamation<https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/acting-attorney-general-whitaker-statement-presidential-proclamation>
* White House Fact Sheet<https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/president-donald-j-trump-upholding-rule-law-ensuring-consequences-illegally-cross-border/>
* DHS Myth v. Fact<https://www.dhs.gov/news/2018/11/09/dhs-myth-vs-fact-asylum-proclamation-and-rule>
* EOIR Memo<https://www.justice.gov/eoir/page/file/1109531/download>
* USCIS Guidance<https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/USCIS/Laws/Memoranda/2018/2018-11-09-PM-602-0166-Procedural_Guidance_for_Implementing_Regulatory_Changes_Created_by_Interim_Final_Rule.pdf>Immigration Court Backlog Surpasses One Million Cases<http://trac.syr.edu/whatsnew/email.181106.html>
TRAC: The Immigration Court backlog has jumped by 225,846 cases since the end of January 2017 when President Trump took office. This represents an overall growth rate of 49 percent since the beginning of FY 2017.
USCIS to Continue Implementing New Policy Memorandum on Notices to Appear<https://www.aila.org/infonet/uscis-continue-implementing-new-policy-memorandum>
USCIS announced that starting 11/19/18, it may issue Notices to Appear (NTAs) based on denials of Forms I-914, I-914A, I-918, I-918A, I-360, I-929, I-730, and I-485 as part of its continued implementation of its 6/28/18 policy memo on issuance of NTAs. AILA Doc. No. 18110833. See also USCIS Invitation to Teleconference on Continued Expansion of NTA Policy Guidance<https://www.aila.org/infonet/uscis-invitation-to-teleconference-on-continued>
Catalina Cruz becomes first former ‘Dreamer’ elected to New York state Assembly<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/catalina-cruz-becomes-first-former-dreamer-elected-to-new-york-state-assembly.html>
ImmProf: Democratic candidate Catalina Cruz is now the first “former Dreamer” ever elected to the New York state Assembly and the third in office nationwide. See also Election 2018: Somali Refugee Elected to Congress, Afghan Refugee Elected to New Hampshire House of Representatives<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/somali-refugee-elected-to-congress.html>.
What are 5,200 troops going to do at the border? Maybe not much<https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/immigration/what-are-5-200-troops-going-do-border-maybe-not-n934501>
NBC: Troops are not allowed to apprehend immigrants like border agents do. For the most part, they are laying barbed wire barriers and erecting tent facilities for themselves and the Border Patrol. The only armed troops are military police, who are there to protect the encampments where troops are staying.
ICE Is Imprisoning a Record 44,000 People<https://www.thedailybeast.com/ice-is-imprisoning-a-record-44000-people>
Daily Beast: That massive increase in detentions by the highly controversial agency has prompted questions from rights groups about how Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) obtained the money to place into its custody 4,000 more people than Congress has funded.
Jeff Sessions May Be Gone, But His Impact On Immigration Policy Will Live On<https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/hamedaleaziz/jeff-sessions-impact-immigration-trump>
Buzzfeed: Though he lasted less than two years, Sessions made use of his limited time: He sued sanctuary cities and states. He recommended that the president rescind a popular program that protected immigrants from deportation (DACA) and later announced its end. He implemented a “zero tolerance” policy at the border that resulted in parents being separated from their children. And, perhaps most consequentially, in his role overseeing the immigration courts, made monumental changes to the way judges could oversee their cases and rule on asylum claims.
With or without criminal records, some immigrants spend many years in detention<http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-immigrant-detainees-20181112-story.html>
LA Times: The men have been at the Farmville Detention Center since February 2007 – longer than any other immigrants in the U.S. But no crimes blot their history in the U.S. Two dozen other detainees in California alone have spent more than three years in ICE custody, according to data obtained through a public records request by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse of Syracuse University and released last month.
Street Vendors’ GPS Trackers Have Immigration Advocates Worried<https://documentedny.com/2018/11/12/early-arrival-street-vendors-gps-trackers-have-immigration-advocates-worried/>
Documented: To assign the grades, the department will attach GPS devices to vendors’ carts to track where they are located. The decision to use GPS trackers has been met with fierce backlash from advocates who fear the mostly immigrant street vendors could face privacy concerns if Immigration and Custom Enforcement got ahold of the data. In New York City, about 85 percent of those who own a street food vendors are immigrants.
LITIGATION/CASELAW/RULES/MEMOS
ACLU sues over presidential proclamation on asylum<https://www.aclu.org/blog/immigrants-rights/deportation-and-due-process/president-trumps-proclamation-suspending-asylum>
ACLU: The Trump administration’s action is contrary to the founding values of the country – welcoming homeless refugees to our shores. It also violates U.S. law, so we, along with the Center for Constitutional Rights and the Southern Poverty Law Center, filed suit against the administration on behalf of several nonprofit organizations that provide assistance to refugees and asylum seekers. The plaintiffs include the East Bay Sanctuary Covenant, Al Otro Lado, Innovation Law Lab, and the Central American Resource Center.
After federal government filing, 9th Circuit rules in DACA dispute<http://www.scotusblog.com/2018/11/after-federal-government-filing-9th-circuit-rules-in-daca-dispute/>
SCOTUSblog: Three days ago, the federal government went to the Supreme Court, asking the justices to weigh in on a dispute over the Trump administration’s decision to end a program known as Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals even before the federal courts of appeals – and in particular the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit – could review the government’s appeal from district court rulings against it. Today the 9th Circuit issued its ruling in the challenge to the termination of the program, known as DACA, which allows some undocumented immigrants who came to the United States as children to apply for protection from deportation. The ruling means not only that the Supreme Court is now more likely to take up the DACA dispute, but that it could do so this term.
RESOURCES
* Resources Related to DOD’s Tightening of Rules and Discharges of Immigrants from the Military<https://www.aila.org/infonet/dod-tightens-rules-for-immigrants-joining-military>
* Know Your Rights: What to Do If You Are Detained at a Port of Entry (LPR)<https://www.aila.org/advo-media/tools/psas/what-to-do-detained-port-of-entry-lpr>EVENTS
* 11/13/18 CGRS best practices for working with medical and mental health professionals who provide expert testimony in asylum cases<https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdUH3NiTlKVx3qcSizbxUVF9-1y8xmAoo7CqwDRywI70xzugQ/viewform>
* 11/26-28/18 CLINIC & NITA “Advocacy in Immigration Matters”<https://cliniclegal.org/calendar/nita-clinics-advocacy-immigration-matters-training>
* 11/29/18 The Ins and Outs of Lawful Admission<https://aila.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=285482eaa25f6af572462f19e&id=257ceb8a3f&e=9f707adf3e>
* 12/11/18 Accidental Adjustments: How to Handle Wrongly Issued Status<https://aila.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=285482eaa25f6af572462f19e&id=b2dc22a372&e=9f707adf3e>
* 12/17/18 20th Annual AILA New York Chapter Immigration Law Symposium<https://aila.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=285482eaa25f6af572462f19e&id=aa74902e0c&e=9f707adf3e>
* 12/20/18 Mental Incapacity: Merging Treatment and Enforcement<https://aila.us2.list-manage.com/track/click?u=285482eaa25f6af572462f19e&id=c77d41e6e2&e=9f707adf3e>
* 2/7/19 Basic Immigration Law 2019: Business, Family, Naturalization and Related Areas<https://www.pli.edu/Content/Seminar/Basic_Immigration_Law_2019_Business_Family/_/N-4kZ1z0zgl8?ID=348125>
* 2/8/19 Asylum, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, Crime Victim, and Other Immigration Relief 2019<https://www.pli.edu/Content/Seminar/Asylum_Special_Immigrant_Juvenile_Status/_/N-4kZ1z0zgl7?ID=348126>
* 03/12/19 AILA Spring Federal Court Litigation Conference<https://www.aila.org/conferences/in-person/2019-aila-spring-federal-court-litigation-conf>ImmProf
Monday, November 12, 2018
* President Trump should withdraw his asylum proclamation<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/president-trump-should-withdraw-his-asylum-proclamation.html>
* From the Bookshelves: The Golden State by Lydia Kiesling<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/from-teh-bookshelves-the-golden-state-by-lydia-kiesling.html>
* There is No “Invasion” at the Border: The U.S. Government’s 2018 Border Data Clearly Shows Why the Trump Administration is on the Wrong Track<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/there-is-no-invasion-at-the-border-.html>
Sunday, November 11, 2018* Happy Veterans Day<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/happy-veterans-day.html>
* High Profile Immigration Hardliners Who Lost at the Polls<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/high-profile-immigration-hardliners-who-lost-at-the-polls.html>
* Catalina Cruz becomes first former ‘Dreamer’ elected to New York state Assembly<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/catalina-cruz-becomes-first-former-dreamer-elected-to-new-york-state-assembly.html>
Friday, November 9, 2018* Breaking News: Presidential Proclamation Addressing Mass Migration Through the Southern Border of the United States<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/breaking-news-presidential-proclamation-addressing-mass-migration-through-the-southern-border-of-the.html>
* Sessions: The Trump Administration’s Once-Indispensable Man on Immigration<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/sessions-the-trump-administrations-once-indispensable-man-on-immigration.html>
Thursday, November 8, 2018* New Asylum Regulation! Secretary Kirstjen M. Nielsen, Acting Attorney General Matthew G. Whitaker Statement on DHS-DOJ Asylum Regulation<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/new-asylum-regulation-secretary-kirstjen-m-nielsen-acting-attorney-general-matthew-g-whitaker-statem.html>
* Ninth Circuit Affirms Injunction Barring the Rescission of DACA<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/ninth-circuit-affirms-injunction-barring-the-rescission-of-daca.html>
* Birthright Citizenship: A Look at Other Nations<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/birthright-citizenship-a-look-at-other-nations.html>
* Election 2018: Somali Refugee Elected to Congress, Afghan Refugee Elected to New Hampshire House of Representatives<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/somali-refugee-elected-to-congress.html>
* Symposium Available On-Line: Immigration Law & Resistance: Ensuring a Nation of Immigrants<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/symposium-available-on-line-symposium-immigration-law-resistance-ensuring-a-nation-of-immigrants.html>
* Latino Peoples in the New America: Racialization and Resistance by José A. Cobas, Joe R. Feagin, Daniel J. Delgado, Maria Chávez, editors<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/-latino-peoples-in-the-new-america-racialization-and-resistance-by-jos%C3%A9-a-cobas-joe-r-feagin-daniel-.html>
Wednesday, November 7, 2018* TRAC : Immigration Court Backlog Hits One Million Cases!<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/trac-immigration-backlog-hits-one-million-cases.html>
* From the Bookshelves: Lucy E. Salyer, Under the Starry Flag: How a Band of Irish Americans Joined the Fenian Revolt and Sparked a Crisis over Citizenship<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/from-the-bookshelves-lucy-e-salyer.html>
* Sessions is out!<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/sessions-is-out-.html>
* Should Noncitizens Be Allowed to Vote?<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/should-noncitizens-be-allowed-to-vote.html>
* Conference: Access to Justice, Due Process and the Rule of Law in the US Immigration System – Honoring Jose P. Osuna<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/conference-access-to-justice-due-process-and-the-rule-of-law-in-the-us-immigration-system-honoring-j.html>
* Doris Meissner: Asylum Reform – Not National Guard – Needed at Border<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/doris-meissen-asylum-m-reform-not-national-guard-needed.html>
Tuesday, November 6, 2018* Memes of the Day. Enjoy.<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/memes-of-the-day-enjoy.html>
* Seton Hall Law School Job Opening: Practitioner-in-Residence, Immigration<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/seton-hall-law-school-job-opening-practitioner-in-residence-immigration.html>
* DHS Seeks SCOTUS Review of DACA Before Courts of Appeal Issue Decisions<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/dhs-seeks-scotus-review-of-daca-before-courts-of-appeal-issue-decisions.html>
* Last Day to Comment on Fed Reg re: Flores Settlement<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/last-day-to-comment-on-fed-reg-re-flores-settlement.html>
* Call for Papers: AILA Law Journal<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/call-for-papers-aila-law-journal.html>
Monday, November 5, 2018* NBC Airs Immigration Trump Ad Deemed Racist by CNN<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/nbc-airs-immigration-trump-ad-deemed-racist-by-cnn.html>
* The President’s Immigration Guru: Stephen Miller<https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/11/the-presidents-immigration-guru-stephen-miller.html>AILA NEWS UPDATE
http://www.aila.org/advo-media/news/clips <https://www.aila.org/advo-media/news/clips>
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Thanks, Elizabeth. Most impressive, as usual!
PWS
11-12-18