COVID-19 & Closures

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

 

EOIR Status Overview & EOIR Court Status Map/List: Unless previously specified on the court status list, hearings in non-detained cases at courts are postponed through, and including, May 14, 2021. (It is unclear when the next announcement will be. EOIR announced 5/14 on 3/29, 4/16 on Fri. 3/5, 3/19 on Wed. 2/10, 2/19 on Mon. 1/25, 2/5 on Mon. 1/11, and 1/22 on Mon. 12/28.) There is no announced date for reopening NYC non-detained at this time.

 

USCIS Office Closings and Visitor Policy

 

TOP NEWS

 

Apprehensions at Border Reach Highest Level in at Least 15 Years

NYT: The Biden administration apprehended more than 170,000 migrants at the southwest border in March, the most in any month for at least 15 years and up nearly 70 percent from February, as thousands of children remained backed up in detention facilities and border agents released an increasing number of migrant families into the United States, government documents obtained by The New York Times show. See also The US is telling migrants “don’t come.” They might not be listening; Biden bets that he can change how America thinks about migration; Crisis. Surge. Wave. Tide. Flood; Federal workers asked to volunteer for ‘urgent’ border effort amid influx of children; ‘They said, keep going’: migrants escorted back to Mexico without any explanation.

 

Biden Administration Considers Overhaul Of Asylum System At Southern Border

NPR: The plan the Biden administration is considering to speed up the process would take some asylum cases from the southern border out of the hands of the overloaded immigration courts under the Department of Justice. Instead, it would handle them under the purview of the Department of Homeland Security, where asylum officers already process tens of thousands of cases a year, two people familiar with the discussions who were not authorized to speak about administration plans told NPR exclusively.

 

AP-NORC poll: Border woes dent Biden approval on immigration

WaPo: A new poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research also shows that solving the problem of young people at the border is among Americans’ highest immigration priorities: 59% say providing safe treatment of unaccompanied children when they are apprehended should be a high priority, and 65% say the same about reuniting families separated at the border.

 

LexisNexis To Provide Giant Database Of Personal Information To ICE

Intercept: LexisNexis signed a $16.8 million contract to sell information to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to documents shared with The Intercept. The deal is already drawing fire from critics and comes less than two years after the company downplayed its ties to ICE, claiming it was “not working with them to build data infrastructure to assist their efforts.”

 

Foreign workers blocked by Trump are no longer banned from entering the US

Vox: President Joe Biden is reportedly not seeking to renew the ban, which expired Wednesday after Trump extended it in December, citing concerns that foreign workers could threaten employment opportunities for Americans who were laid off as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.

 

“Alien” Will Be Removed From An Immigration Policy Manual Under A Biden Administration Plan

BuzzFeed: United States Citizenship and Immigration Services officials are planning to remove references to immigrants as “aliens” in the agency’s policy manual more than a year after the term was inserted into the guidance during the Trump administration, according to government documents obtained by BuzzFeed News.

 

What NY’s Marijuana Legalization Law Means for Immigrants

CityLimits: Despite now being legal in 16 states — New York included — marijuana remains a controlled substance under federal law.

 

Cuomo Pushes Burdensome Requirements for Undocumented Workers Fund

DocumentedNY: A measure currently planned for New York’s next budget would provide more than $2 billion in cash assistance for New Yorkers who have been ineligible for federal relief payments during the pandemic, including many farm workers, service employees, street vendors, and undocumented laborers who often earn cash wages in the informal economy. But state lawmakers and workers rights advocates say Governor Andrew Cuomo is pushing for a two-tiered system of access to the Excluded Worker Fund that would distribute benefits based on burdensome proof-of-employment requirements.

 

LITIGATION/CASELAW/RULES/MEMOS

 

EOIR Issues Policy Memo Revising Case Flow Processing Before the Immigration Courts

EOIR issued a policy memo (PM 21-18) implementing a revised case flow processing model for certain non-detained cases with representation in immigration courts. EOIR concurrently cancelled PM 21-05. The memo is effective April 2, 2021. AILA Doc. No. 21040237. See also EOIR Cancels Policy Memo 21-05 on Enhanced Case Flow Processing.

 

BIA Says New York Aggravated DUI Is a CIMT

Following Matter of Lopez-Meza, the BIA ruled that the offense of aggravated unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle in the first degree in violation of §511(3)(a)(i) of the New York Vehicle and Traffic Law is categorically a CIMT. Matter of Vucetic, 28 I&N Dec. 276 (BIA 2021) AILA Doc. No. 21033133

 

BIA Rules That the “Offense Clause” of the Federal Conspiracy Statute, 18 USC §371, Is Divisible

BIA ruled that the “offense clause” of the federal conspiracy statute, 18 USC §371, is divisible and the underlying substantive crime – selling counterfeit currency in violation of 18 USC §473 in this instance – is an element of the offense. Matter of Al Sabsabi, 28 I&N Dec. 269 (BIA 2021) AILA Doc. No. 21032934

 

CA5 Upholds Denial of Motion for Reconsideration Where Petitioner Alleged Non-Delivery of Documents from the BIA

The court held that the BIA did not abuse its discretion in concluding that the petitioner had failed to rebut the presumption of delivery of the briefing schedule, transcript, and IJ’s written decision, finding that his counsel’s declarations were insufficient. (Njilefac v. Garland, 3/24/21) AILA Doc. No. 21033036

 

CA8 Finds BIA Reasonably Concluded That Christian Petitioner Could Safely Relocate to Another Part of El Salvador

The court held that substantial evidence supported the BIA’s determination that the petitioner—a 22-year-old Christian woman who claimed she had been targeted by gangs in El Salvador—could relocate to another part of El Salvador if forced to return. (Guatemala-Pineda v. Garland, 3/26/21) AILA Doc. No. 21033038

 

CA9 Remands Asylum Claim of Salvadoran Petitioner with an Intellectual Disability

The court held that the BIA and IJ erred in misunderstanding the petitioner’s proposed social group comprised of “El Salvadoran men with intellectual disabilities who exhibit erratic behavior” for purposes of asylum and withholding relief. (Acevedo Granados v. Garland, 3/24/21) AILA Doc. No. 21033039

 

NJ High Court Forbids Detaining Migrants To Block Removal

Law360: New Jersey judges may not order a pre-trial detention for unauthorized immigrants who are charged with crimes in order to prevent federal authorities from deporting them, according to a ruling from the state’s highest court.

 

DHS Sanctioned Over Border Officers’ Note-Shredding

A California federal court sanctioned the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, adopting a magistrate judge’s report calling out “negligent destruction” of evidence amid litigation that asylum-seekers were turned away at the Southern border.

 

USCIS Confirms Elimination of “Blank Space” Criteria

USCIS confirmed that it will no longer reject Form I-589, Form I-612, or Form I-918 if an applicant leaves a blank space. USCIS stated that it has reverted to the form rejection criteria it applied before October 2019 regarding blank responses for all forms. AILA Doc. No. 21040135

 

DOS Provides Update on the Phased Resumption of Routine Visa Services

DOS updates its announcement and FAQs on the phased resumption of visa services following the expiration of Presidential Proclamation 10052, which suspended the entry of certain nonimmigrant visa applicants into the United States. AILA Doc. No. 20071435

 

DHS Extends Flexibility in Requirements Related to Form I-9 Compliance

ICE announced that it has extended the flexibilities in rules related to Form I-9 compliance during the COVID-19 pandemic until May 31, 2021. The extension includes guidance for employees hired on or after April 1, 2021, and work exclusively in a remote setting due to COVID-19-related precautions. AILA Doc. No. 20032033

 

ACTIONS

 

• Join the Conversation to #HoldUSCISAccountable
• Comment on Security Bars and Processing (Again): Comments on amending or rescinding the Security Bars Rule must be submitted on or before April 21, 2021.

 

RESOURCES

 

• Associations between memory loss and trauma in US asylum seekers: A retrospective review of medico-legal affidavits
• AIC: A Guide to Title 42 Expulsions at the Border
• AILA: Practice Alert: Consular Processing After Sunsetting of Proclamation 10052 and Embassy Backlogs Created by COVID-19 Travel Bans
• AILA: Practice Alert: USCIS Begins Sending Invites to Certain Applicants to Resubmit I-485 Applications That Were Previously Rejected
• AILA: Ethics: Withdrawing When a Client Goes MIA
• AILA: Practice Pointer: Obtaining NIV Appointments and Applying for National Interest Exception Waivers for Travelers from the Schengen Area, United Kingdom, and Ireland
• CLINIC: Pulling Back the Curtain-Analysis of New Government Data on Temporary Protected Status
• CLINIC: Helping Venezuelan Clients Navigate TPS and DED: FAQs for Legal Practitioners
• CRS: Searches and Seizures at the Border and the Fourth Amendment
• IDP: New York State Legislature Passes Marijuana Reform Bill Including Positive Changes for Immigrant New Yorkers
• IJC: Employment Authorization for People Formerly in MPP
• ILRC: Liberian Refugee Immigration Fairness Act Extended to December 20, 2021
• ILRC Comment to USCIS Policy Manual Changes on Naturalization Adjudications
• NIRP: Mendez Rojas FAQs & Resources (asylum class action)

 

EVENTS

 

• 4/5/21 Overview of Immigration Law Training
• 4/5/21-4/26/21 Webinar Series: Selected Issues in U Nonimmigrant Status
• 4/7/21 Case Flow Processing Before the Immigration Courts
• 4/7/21 WHOSE JUDGE IS IT ANYWAY? — The Crisis Of Independence In Our Immigration Courts
• 4/14/21 Temporary Protected Status (TPS) and Deferred Enforced Departure (DED) for Venezuela
• 4/15/21 DACA
• 4/15/21 All About EADs
• 4/20/21 Motions to Reopen in Immigration Court: Part II – U and T MTR
• 4/20/21 Hot Topics in Naturalization Adjudications
• 4/21/21 Working with Domestic Violence Immigrant Survivors: The Intersection of Basic Family Law, Immigration, Benefits, and Housing Issues in California 2021
• 4/22/21 Dissecting a BIA Decision for a Successful Circuit Court Appeal
• 4/28/21 Community Defense: Legal Service Partnerships with Organizers
• 5/4/21 Public Charge: Current State of Play
• 5/5/21 100 Days: Accountability on Immigration
• 5/5/21-5/6/21 U Visas: Advanced & Emerging Issues
• 5/6/21 Hot Topics in Asylum Law
• 5/10/21 All About DOJ Recognition and Accreditation
• 5/13/21 Marijuana and Immigrants
• 5/17/21-5/20/21 CLINIC Convening 2021
• 5/18/21 Ethics in Representing Family Members in U Visa, U AOS/929, and VAWA Cases
• 5/26/21 Hot Topics in Removal Defense
• 6/1/21 VAWA Adjustment of Status Fundamentals
• 6/9/21 Hot topics: Adjudication and Enforcement Trends
• 6/10/21 Public Charge and Hot Topics in Consular Processing
• 6/14/21 Taxes at the Border: Understanding the Tax Consequences of Immigration Status
• 6/15/21 U Visa Hot Topics
• 6/15/21 Motions to Reopen in Immigration Court: Part III – VAWA Self-petitioners
• 6/22/21 Defending Immigration Removal Proceedings 2021
• 6/30/21 Immigration Update – June 2021
• 7/22/21 Defending Immigration Removal Proceedings 2021
• 9/23/21 Representing Children in Immigration Matters 2021: Effective Advocacy and Best Practices

 

ImmProf

 

Monday, April 5, 2021

• Ruben Navarette Jr: “The Real Presidential Immigration Villain Is Bill Clinton”

Sunday, April 4, 2021

• Immigrant of the week: Senator Mazie Hirono
• Happy Easter! The Immigrant Origins of Easter Traditions
• Border Patrol video shows two children dropped over border wall, children safe
• Immigration Article of the Day: The Problem with Public Charge by Joseph Daval

Saturday, April 3, 2021

• Daca: Resilience in the Face of Uncertainty
• Another Border Wall Video For Your Class
• Battle of the Congressional Titans, Immigration Reform Coming?
• DHS watchdog finds widespread mistreatment of immigrants at ICE facility
• Immigration Article of the Day: Asylum Attorney Burnout and Secondary Trauma by Lindsay Muir Harris & Hillary Mellinger

Friday, April 2, 2021

• Pope Francis Speaks Out About Climate Migration
• Immigrant of the Day: Joseph Pilates
• Hate Crimes and Anti-Asian Violence – April 6, 2021 (12pm MDT) VIRTUAL
• Senator Joe Manchin after border visit: ‘Past time to do immigration reform’
• Biden administration ends Trump-era rule that rejected immigration applications with blank spaces
• Immigration Article of the Day: The Blueprint for Dred Scott: United States v. Dow and the Multi-Racial Jurisprudence of White Supremacy  by Gabriel “Jack” Chin

Thursday, April 1, 2021

• Blast from the Past: The Latest “New” Migrant Crossing Point in Arizona: A Bird’s Eye View (April 24, 2006)
• Ooof. April Fools Day Gut-Punch from Jose Antonio Vargas
• Jill Biden Visits Delano on Cesar Chavez Day

Wednesday, March 31, 2021

• New Data Report on TPS Holders
• New Yorker Hosts Panel on Immigration and the Politics of the Southern Border: Today at 6 p.m. Eastern
• The Backdrop Podcast: Lizbeth De La Cruz on “Humanizing Deportation”
• A Guide to Title 42 Expulsions at the Border
• 4 reasons why migrant children arriving alone to the US create a ‘border crisis’
• America’s Immigration Amnesia: Despite recurrent claims of crisis at the border, the United States still does not have a coherent immigration policy.
• A Panel Discussion of the Independence of the Immigration Courts

Tuesday, March 30, 2021

• Seeking Access to Historical Papers of Anti-immigrant Powerhouse, John Tanton
• Immigration Article of the Day: ‘Crimes Involving Moral Turpitude’: The Constitutional and Persistent Immigration Law Doctrine by Craig S. Lerner
• Cruelty at the border is not the same as strength or an effective immigration strategy

Monday, March 29, 2021

• Immprof Natalie Nanasi on Dallas’ “Decompression Center” for Migrant Children
• The Legacy of Racism within the U.S. Border Patrol by Katy Murdza and Walter Ewing
• Center for American Progress: The Extremist Campaign to Blame Immigrants for U.S. Environmental Problems
• International Organization for Migration: It Takes a Community Campaign
• Immigration Articles of the Day: Empathy for the Vulnerable? The Fourth Circuit’s Internal Struggle to Grapple With the Trump Administration’s Immigration Policies: Parts I and II

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

Better late than never! Liz & I were pretty busy this week!

OK, so here’s why Liz and I are “a team” for the NDPA! 

Liz went first on our HNBA Panel on Wednesday night! She described the problems in Immigration Court as being “kinda too dry and highly technical for most people to get excited about.” 

There it was, nice and soft, lingering just above the net, inviting my “monster spike!” 🏐 I let loose with my most colorful, down-to-earth, “tell it like it is in plain language” — no section numbers — broadside about the due process crisis in our “Clown Courts”🤡 and how it not only brings down our entire justice system, but also poses a real, existential threat to America’s Hispanic communities that they can only ignore at their peril! Death on your doorstep! ☠️⚰️ That shouldn’t be too dry or technical for the masses to understand!

Having an unqualified, highly-non diverse, restrictionist tilting, out of control judiciary “Dred Scottfying” 🤮 individuals of color, particularly Hispanic women and children, on a daily basis and getting away with it is no laughing matter!

Also, as I stated, if talented Hispanic lawyers want to stop being beaten up in Immigration Court and to finally gain “entree” into a now highly non-diverse, uneducated, often clueless Article III Judiciary that frequently diminishes their professional achievements while dehumanizing and abusing their clients, then “Houston, we’ve got a problem!” 

Judge Merrick Garland, who controls all U.S. Immigration Court appointments, appears determined to follow in the footsteps of his Dem predecessors by: 

1. failing to meaningfully reform the existing dysfunctional, non-diverse, non-expert Immigration Judiciary (nearly 600 stong, making it the largest “entry level opportunity” in “Federal Judging”) by getting rid of the “deadwood” and re-competing these “life or death” jobs with merit-based selection criteria that honor immigration and human rights expertise, require demonstrated commitment to due process above all else, recognize the crucial experience gained by representing humans in Immigration Court, and have a selection process involving acknowledged private sector immigration experts (not just Government bureaucrats, many of whom have neither represented an individual in Immigration Court nor heard an asylum case in a judicial capacity); 
2. failing to actively, aggressively, and nationally publicize, hype, and recruit for these judicial jobs in under-represented communities of minority lawyers (basically, systematically excluded from the Immigration Judiciary in the past) using available minority legal “role models” to drum up interest and “sell” the jobs to those who haven’t applied in the past (perhaps because of EOIR’s recent reputation for hostility toward individuals of color and disdain for human rights and due process, as well as their reputation for sloppy judicial work product) — to state the obvious, simply posting bureaucratic descriptions on “USA Jobs” is a joke — designed to repeat the “insiders only” non-diverse, non-expert composition of the current Immigration Courts; and 
3. intentionally ignoring (it ain’t rocket science) the incredible potential of an independent, diverse, highly qualified, “model” Immigration Judiciary as a transition to a long overdue Article I Immigration Court and a “stepping stone” for a more diverse, progressive, immigration-human rights-due process oriented (as actually applied in communities of color throughout America) Article III Judiciary, which is also reeling right now, largely as a result of its lack of diversity, skewed legal knowledge, and lack of sensitivity and commitment to equal justice for all in America.

Folks, Judge Garland and his team at DOJ have made it clear by their lack of constructive actions, ongoing failure to denounce and take action against the inferior work product coming out of the Immigration Courts (that actually puts the lives of minority individuals in jeopardy), unwillingness to meaningfully engage with the immigration and human rights community, and ridiculous failure to enlist experts from the NDPA on their “A-Team” to clean-up the unmitigated disaster at EOIR: This is not going to happen without a fight! A “knock-down, drag ‘em out fight!” 

Immigration and human rights advocates are dealing with the daily bias, lousy judging, inane precedents, and health-threating conditions in the muck-hole known as “Immigration Court!” Meanwhile, buddies of neo-Nazi restrictionists Stephen MIller and Gene Hamilton are still drawing fat paychecks in senior positions at EOIR where they can continue to tramp on the legal rights of you and your clients and to further screw up the already totally dysfunctional Immigration Courts. Studies, bogus “Town Meetings,” focus groups, and a few cosmetic bureaucratic changes that don’t scratch the surface aren’t going to hack it! Never have, never will! Even I know that!

If that doesn’t make sense to you, then it’s time to take aggressive concerted action to stop Judge Garland from continuing to run American justice into the ground — over your bodies and your clients’ legal and human rights!

🇺🇸⚖️🗽Due Process Forever! Put an end to deadly ☠️ “Clown Courts!”🤡 Demand “Equal Justice for All!” It’s a right, not an option!

 

 

 

PWS

04-10-21