🏴‍☠️☠️🤮⚰️INSIDE ICE’S NEW AMERICAN GULAG (“NAG”) WITH MICA ROSENBERG @ REUTERS! – As COVID Rages, “Civil” Detainees Jailed By ICE In Deadly Conditions For Longer Periods!

In our most recent story on ICE detention and the coronavirus, we looked at ICE data going back to 2010 and found immigrants are being held now for longer on average than at any time in a decade in the middle of a pandemic, which has now infected more than 6,400 detainees nationwide. We spoke to 20 detainees from Africa and Latin America who have been detained for more than six months. Some were asylum seekers held for long periods as they seek relief in immigration court, others were DACA recipients who have served criminal sentences but are still fighting their deportation orders.

Detainees are locked up for much longer, even as the overall detention population dropped dramatically this year. Part of the reason for that decline: around 150,000 expulsions at the US-Mexico border under new health rules put in place by the Trump administration in March.

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-immigration-detention-insight/amid-pandemic-sharply-increased-u-s-detention-times-put-migrants-at-risk-idUSKBN26U15Y

This follows on our earlier reporting about how ICE transfers of detainees have exacerbated the spread of the virus in some cases and how detainees have died of COVID-19. As well as how the families of detainees are being affected because of their frontline work.

Thanks again to everyone who has helped me report these stories and please do keep in touch with future tips. Beyond detention, we are also following the swift pace of immigration policy changes across the board.

All the best,

Mica

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

Thanks Mica and crew for continuing to expose these outrageous violations our Constitution, our international obligations, morality, common sense, and our obligations to our fellow humans by the Trump regime’s white nationalist kakistocracy!

Vote ‘em out, vote ‘em out, on every level! Return our nation to the rule of law, common sense, competency, and simple human decency.

PWS

10-11-20

NDPA NEWS: Liz Jordan @ Immigration Detention Accountability Project (IDAP), Denver, With USDC Victory On DHS’s Deadly ☠️🤮⚰️ COVID Practices!

Elizabeth Jordan Esquire
Director, Immigration Detention Accountability Project (IDAP)

Hi everyone,

I am pleased to report that we, along with co-counsel SPLC, DRA, Orrick, and Willkie, just got the attached order on our motion to enforce our Fraihat COVID preliminary injunction. We are working on developing guidance for detained folks, their families, advocates and allies. We encourage you to read it through if you’re interested because there are a lot of gems in there, but did want to flag these four big takeaways ASAP:

Defendants shall mandate more widespread and regular testing of medically vulnerable people, consistent with CDC guidelines and above the level provided by the BOP and state prisons.

Defendants shall mandate that medical isolation and quarantine are distinct from solitary, segregated, or punitive housing, that extended lockdowns as a means of COVID-19 prevention are not allowed, and that access to diversion and to telephones must be maintained to the fullest extent possible.

Defendant shall provide more protective, and more concrete, transfer protocols to protect medically vulnerable people, including a suspension of transfers with a narrow and well defined list of exceptions consistent with CDC guidance.

On custody redeterminations, blanket or cursory release denials are prohibited. Only in rare cases should a medically vulnerable detained individual who is not subject to mandatory detention remain detained, and any exceptions must be supported by specific justifications. With respect to people who are subject to mandatory detention, defendants must perform an individualized assessment, and should only continue to be detained after consideration of the risk of severe illness or death, with due regard to the public health emergency.

Many thanks to the many of you on these various lists for your reporting of on-the-ground conditions and results of release requests for class members, for evidence you provided in support of this motion, and for your thought partnership and tireless advocacy on these issues. Free them all!

Thanks

Liz.

Elizabeth Jordan*

(she/her/ella)

Director, Immigration Detention Accountability Project (IDAP)

Civil Rights Education and Enforcement Center (CREEC)NDP

Here’s Judge Jesus Bernal’s Order in Fraihat, et al. v. ICE:

2020-10-08 [240] Order Granting MTE in part

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

Congrats, Liz, and thanks for all you do for American justice!

This sentence from Judge Bernal’s order says it all about the Trump ICE kakistocracy:`

Defendants have established a pattern of noncompliance or exceedingly slow compliance that calls for more active Court monitoring than has heretofore been the case.

What if we had an independent U.S. Immigration Court with judges who had demonstrated due process and human rights expertise? Such a court could require ICE to comply with the law, take appropriate corrective action against contemptuous non-compliance, and relieve US District Judges from the responsibility to supervise ICE.

Kakistocracy is neither ethical nor efficient! Vote the kakistocracy out this Fall!

Due Process Forever!

PWS

10-09-20

ROUND TABLE STAR 🌟 HON. SUE ROY REPORTS ON AILA LITIGATION ABOUT NEW JERSEY IMMIGRATION COURTS⚖️!

Hon. Susan G. Roy
Law Office of Susan G. Roy, LLC
Princeton Junction, NJ
Member, Round Table of Former Immigration Judges

ROUND TABLE STAR 🌟 HON. SUE ROY REPORTS ON NJ AILA LITIGATION ABOUT IMMIGRATION COURTS⚖️!

By Hon. Sue Roy

Former U.S. Immigration Judge

Exclusive to Courtside

Oct. 8, 2020

As Paul had written about in August, the New Jersey chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA-NJ) filed a complaint against the Department of Justice/Executive Office for Immigration Review (DOJ/EOIR) over the arbitrary re-opening of the Newark Immigration Court for in-person hearings on July 13, 2020, without proper COVID-19 safety procedures and protocols in place.

This is despite the fact that in March, numerous individuals contracted COVID-19 because the Court did not timely close at the outset of the pandemic. To date, a well-respected immigration attorney who was present in the building during that time passed away from COVID-19 complications. Three additional people who worked in the building have also passed away from COVID-19, and many individuals became quite ill due to the exposure; some of whom have permanent health complications as a result.

As of now, most courts in NJ remain closed; courts at the municipal, country, state, and federal level have successfully utilized either telephonic or televideo technology to ensure that cases move forward. In fact, the NJ District Court is literally next door to the Newark Immigration Court; it remains closed, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, which is located in the same building as the Newark Immigration Court, remains closed as well.

Before filing the lawsuit, AILA-NJ asked EOIR to provide them with information regarding what safeguards were going to be implemented at the time of reopening, but EOIR declined to respond.

It should be noted that the National Association of Immigration Judges (NAIJ) has been seeking the same information from EOIR, and EOIR has refused to release information to NAIJ as well.

Accordingly, AILA-NJ, through the pro bono representation of Gibbons, P.C., filed a complaint and an injunction request in the NJ District Court. DOJ, represented by the U.S. Attorney’s Office, advised the Court that it was not their responsibility to ensure the safety of individuals utilizing the Court; it was the parties’ responsibility to follow proper COVID-19 safety protocols. While Judge Vasquez did not grant the injunction, he was extremely critical of DOJ’s position, calling it “shocking” and “disheartening.” He noted that it was impossible for him to determine if EOIR had acted in an arbitrary and capricious manner in reopening the Newark Immigration Court without being advised as to what went into the decision-making process.

Two and ½ weeks ago, DOJ asked for a 2-week extension to file their responses to Judge Vasquez’s requests for information regarding EOIR’s safety plans, any policy discussions/memoranda from the various agencies who were allegedly involved in the decision to reopen Newark Immigration Court in July. DOJ also indicated that, despite previously stating that televideo proceedings were not possible, they were looking into setting them up at Newark. AILA-NJ agreed to the continuance request.

The Newark Immigration Court has held a few televideo hearings over the past two weeks. Attorneys are required to have their clients present with them in their offices when appearing before the Court. One attorney who was forced to do this tested positive for COVD-19 two days later and is now in quarantine.

Instead of then complying with Judge’s Vasquez’s order, last Thursday, DOJ filed a letter brief asking the Judge to dismiss the lawsuit as moot. AILA-NJ offered to settle the matter through the use of a consent order; DOJ refused. Therefore, AILA-NJ has opposed the request to dismiss the lawsuit, noting the continuing safety issues, the lack of any uniform procedures for the video hearings, the fact that televideo hearings are subject to individual judges’ discretion, and other concerns.

There is a telephonic conference now scheduled before Judge Vasquez for Thursday, October 8, at 11:30 am.

As of now, televideo hearings are only being offered at Newark Immigration Court, (not nationwide) and only to AILA-NJ attorney members who request it. Non-AILA-NJ attorneys are not being offered this option, and neither are pro se litigants, who are required to appear in person for master calendar and individual hearings. Court staff, interpreters, and immigration judges are required to be physically present for hearings, thus risking exposure to COVID-19, which is currently on the rise again in New Jersey generally, and in Newark in particular.

We have always suspected that EOIR had no safety plans or protocols in place before it decided to arbitrarily reopen the Newark Immigration Court. This view is shared by the NAIJ. The fact that EOIR reversed course and set up televideo hearings in Newark in less than 2 weeks and are now seeking to not release any information demonstrates just how disingenuous and unscrupulous DOJ has become.

NAIJ, the New Jersey State Bar Association, the Hispanic Bar Association, and the Round Table of Former Immigration Judges, among others, have all issued statements in support of the AILA-NJ litigation.

Hon. Susan B. Roy is a member of the Round Table of Former Immigration Judges and the principal of Law Office of Susan G. Roy, LLC in Princeton Junction, New Jersey.

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

Thanks, Sue, for all you do for due process!

Here are links to my previous reports on the litigation:

https://immigrationcourtside.com/2020/09/05/22729/

🏴‍☠️☠️🤮👎KAKISTOCRACY WATCH: NJ AILA Sues EOIR’s Malicious Incompetents To Stop Deadly ☠️☠️☠️🤮 In-Person Hearings

Due Process Forever!

PWS

10–08-20

🏴‍☠️☠️🤮⚰️👎CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY, “PERPS” ON THE LOOSE! — DOJ Internal Report Shows How “Gonzo Apocalypto” Sessions, Rosenstein, Hamilton Conspired To Separate Migrant Kids In Violation Of 5th Amendment — When Will These Criminals Be Charged & Prosecuted Under 18 USC 242? — NY Times Reports!

Sessions in a cage — Jeff Sessions’ Cage by J.D. Crowe, Alabama Media Group/AL.com
Republished under license

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/06/us/politics/family-separation-border-immigration-jeff-sessions-rod-rosenstein.html?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_nn_20201007&instance_id=22889&nl=the-morning&regi_id=119096355&section_index=2&section_name=the_latest_news&segment_id=40077&te=1&user_id=70724c8ee3c2ebb50a6ef32ab050a46b

‘We Need to Take Away Children,’ No Matter How Young, Justice Dept. Officials Said

Top department officials were “a driving force” behind President Trump’s child separation policy, a draft investigation report said.

By Michael D. Shear, Katie Benner and Michael S. Schmidt

Oct. 6, 2020

505

WASHINGTON — The five U.S. attorneys along the border with Mexico, including three appointed by President Trump, recoiled in May 2018 against an order to prosecute all undocumented immigrants even if it meant separating children from their parents. They told top Justice Department officials they were “deeply concerned” about the children’s welfare.

But the attorney general at the time, Jeff Sessions, made it clear what Mr. Trump wanted on a conference call later that afternoon, according to a two-year inquiry by the Justice Department’s inspector general into Mr. Trump’s “zero tolerance” family separation policy.

“We need to take away children,” Mr. Sessions told the prosecutors, according to participants’ notes. One added in shorthand: “If care about kids, don’t bring them in. Won’t give amnesty to people with kids.”

Rod J. Rosenstein, then the deputy attorney general, went even further in a second call about a week later, telling the five prosecutors that it did not matter how young the children were. He said that government lawyers should not have refused to prosecute two cases simply because the children were barely more than infants.

“Those two cases should not have been declined,” John Bash, the departing U.S. attorney in western Texas, wrote to his staff immediately after the call. Mr. Bash had declined the cases, but Mr. Rosenstein “instructed that, per the A.G.’s policy, we should NOT be categorically declining immigration prosecutions of adults in family units because of the age of a child.”

The Justice Department’s top officials were “a driving force” behind the policy that spurred the separation of thousands of families, many of them fleeing violence in Central America and seeking asylum in the United States, before Mr. Trump abandoned it amid global outrage, according to a draft report of the results of the investigation by Michael E. Horowitz, the department’s inspector general.

The separation of migrant children from their parents, sometimes for months, was at the heart of the Trump administration’s assault on immigration. But the fierce backlash when the administration struggled to reunite the children turned it into one of the biggest policy debacles of the president’s term.

Though Mr. Sessions sought to distance himself from the policy, allowing Mr. Trump and Homeland Security Department officials to largely be blamed, he and other top law enforcement officials understood that “zero tolerance” meant that migrant families would be separated and wanted that to happen because they believed it would deter future illegal immigration, Mr. Horowitz wrote.

The draft report, citing more than 45 interviews with key officials, emails and other documents, provides the most complete look at the discussions inside the Justice Department as the family separation policy was developed, pushed and ultimately carried out with little concern for children.

This article is based on a review of the 86-page draft report and interviews with three government officials who read it in recent months and described its conclusions and many of the details in it. The officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they had not been authorized to discuss it publicly, cautioned that the final report could change.

Before publishing the findings of its investigations, the inspector general’s office typically provides draft copies to Justice Department leaders and others mentioned in the reports to ensure that they are accurate.

Mr. Horowitz had been preparing to release his report since late summer, according to a person familiar with the investigation, though the process allowing for responses from current and former department officials whose conduct is under scrutiny is likely to delay its release until after the presidential election.

Mr. Sessions refused to be interviewed, the report noted. Mr. Rosenstein, who is now a lawyer in private practice, defended himself in his interview with investigators in response to questioning about his role, according to two of the officials. Mr. Rosenstein’s former office submitted a 64-page response to the report.

“If any United States attorney ever charged a defendant they did not personally believe warranted prosecution, they violated their oath of office,” Mr. Rosenstein said in a statement. “I never ordered anyone to prosecute a case.”

. . . .

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

Read the complete article at the link.

U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw concluded that intentional separation of families was unconstitutional — a clear violation of Fifth Amendment due process. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/06/26/us/politics/family-separations-congress-states.html

The Government did not seriously question the correctness of this finding!

Intentionally violating Constitutional rights (not to mention lying and attempting to cover it up) is clearly a violation of 18 USC 242.

Here’s the text of that section from the DOJ’s own website:

TITLE 18, U.S.C., SECTION 242

Whoever, under color of any law, statute, ordinance, regulation, or custom, willfully subjects any person in any State, Territory, Commonwealth, Possession, or District to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States, … shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both; and if bodily injury results from the acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include the use, attempted use, or threatened use of a dangerous weapon, explosives, or fire, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than ten years, or both; and if death results from the acts committed in violation of this section or if such acts include kidnapping or an attempt to kidnap, aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to commit aggravated sexual abuse, or an attempt to kill, shall be fined under this title, or imprisoned for any term of years or for life, or both, or may be sentenced to death.

https://www.justice.gov/crt/deprivation-rights-under-color-law

Sure looks like an”open and shut” case for prosecution.

The irony: Families and their kids have been traumatized for life, perhaps even killed or disabled by the actions of these criminal conspirators; however, the “perps” remain at large.

Hamilton is on the public dole continuing to wreak-havoc on the Constitution, the rule of law, the Immigration Courts, and human decency at the corrupt Barr DOJ; Rosenstein works for a “fat cat” law firm hauling down a six figure salary while he avoids justice and accountability for his misdeeds; “Gonzo” had the absolute audacity to try to reinsert himself onto the public dole by running for the Senate from Alabama (thankfully, unsuccessfully, even though he previously held the seat for years and misused it as a public forum to spread his racist ideas, xenophobic venom, lies, false narratives, and unrelenting cruelty).

Where’s the “justice” in a system that punishes victims while letting “perps” prosper and go free?

Due Process Forever!

PWS

10-07-20

Why Legal Representation Is Essential To Due Process For Asylum Seekers (In Fewer Than 200 Words)

Why Legal Representation Is Essential To Due Process For Asylum Seekers (In Fewer Than 200 Words)

By. Paul Wickham Schmidt

Retired U.S. Immigration Judge

Courtside Exclusive

Oct. 5, 2020

Unlike criminal defendants, asylum seekers have no right to “appointed counsel.” Yet, never in the history of our country has access to legal assistance been more important to asylum seekers’ Fifth Amendment Due Process rights.

The Justice Department and the DHS have actively sought to skew asylum law against asylum seekers by reversing favorable precedents and promulgating restrictive regulations intended to evade the protections available under the Refugee Act of 1980, the Immigration & Nationality Act, and international conventions. They have also used arrests, detention, shortened filing deadlines, pressure on Asylum Officers and Immigration Judges to deny more asylum applications, and other “gimmicks” to discourage legitimate asylum seekers from filing, documenting, and pursuing their applications.

Without access to competent counsel, experienced in the latest developments in asylum law and enforcement, asylum seekers have little chance of prevailing at the administrative level and virtually no chance of successfully seeking review and intervention from Article III Courts to protect and vindicate precious, often life-saving, statutory and Constitutional rights.

THE GIBSON REPORT — 10-05-20 — Compiled By Elizabeth Gibson, Esquire, NY Legal Assistance Group — Federal Judge Rules Trump Not A Monarch; More Intentional Cruelty, Lies, & Threats Of Politically-Inspired Racist Attacks On Ethnic Communities From DHS; Trump Regime Dumps On Refugees & Commies; Cert. Granted In Credibility Case Apparently Seeking To Screw Refugees At Request Of SG; & Other “Interesting & Sometimes Disturbing Stuff”⚖️

COVID-19

Note: Policies are rapidly changing, so please verify information on the relevant government websites and with colleagues on listservs as best you can.

New

EOIR Status Overview & EOIR Court Status Map/List: Hearings in non-detained cases at courts without an announced date are postponed through, and including, October 23, 2020. [Note: Despite the standing order about practices upon reopening, an opening date has not been announced for NYC non-detained at this time.]

Closures

EOIR Operational Status & Standing Orders

EOIR Case Status

ICE Updates (Including ERO and Detention)

USCIS Updates

Consular Updates

NY Courts Updates

Guidance:

IJ Email Filings

BIA Email Filings

EOIR Standing Orders

EOIR Electronic Signature Guidance

EOIR Update Regarding EOIR Practices Related to the COVID-19 Outbreak

USCIS Visitor Policy

USCIS Extends Flexibility for Responding to Agency Requests

Electronic database of COVID-19 related materials

NY Notary Guidance

TOP NEWS

SIJS Priority Dates

For the first time in more than two years, the priority dates for SIJS applicants from El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala have advanced. The new priority date is February 1, 2018. All I-360 SIJS applications filed on or before February 1, 2018 may now file for adjustment of status. The priority date for Mexican SIJS cases is current which means that any Mexican SIJS applicant may file now for adjustment of status. SIJS adjustment cases will not be able to waive the considerable filing fees if/when the new rules go into effect and given the opacity of the visa bulletin, we are not sure the priority dates will remain at the current dates past October 31.

Trump Virtually Cuts Off Refugees as He Unleashes a Tirade on Immigrants

NYT: The change in the number of refugees that Mr. Trump plans to admit is not drastic: no more than 15,000 in the fiscal year that began Thursday, down from 18,000 in the 2020 fiscal year, which was a record low. The number was set in a notice sent to Congress late Wednesday, shortly before the statutory deadline to set the new limit. Both numbers are slivers of the 110,000 slots that President Barack Obama approved in 2016. See also World Grows Less Accepting of Migrants.

United States closes immigration door to communists in clear swipe at China

SCMP: The United States has released guidance on its immigration laws that will make it almost impossible for members of a Communist party or similar to be granted permanent residence or citizenship of America. The announcement was made in a policy alert issued on Friday by the US Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS). In a sign Washington is dusting off its Cold War-era legislation, the agency said: “In general, unless otherwise exempt, any intending immigrant who is a member or affiliate of the Communist Party or any other totalitarian party … domestic or foreign, is inadmissible to the United States.”

Pence ordered borders closed after CDC experts refused

AP: Vice President Mike Pence in March directed the nation’s top disease control agency to use its emergency powers to effectively seal the U.S. borders, overruling the agency’s scientists who said there was no evidence the action would slow the coronavirus, according to two former health officials. The action has so far caused nearly 150,000 children and adults to be expelled from the country.

Judge Blocks USCIS Fee Increases: Here’s Why It Happened

Forbes: On September 29, 2020, U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White, in the Northern District of California, enjoined the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), USCIS and officials serving in those agencies “from implementing or enforcing the Final Rule or any portion thereof.” The preliminary injunction is in effect nationwide. Immigrant Legal Resource Center, et al. v. Chad F. Wolf, et al. involved 8 non-profit organizations that provide services to immigrants.

Judge Rules Against Trump’s H-1B Visa Ban: President Is Not A Monarch

Forbes: In a closely watched case on the limits of presidential authority over immigration, a federal judge issued a preliminary injunction against the Trump administration’s June 2020 proclamation that suspended the entry of foreign nationals on H-1B, L-1, H-2B and most J-1 temporary visas. U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White ruled the president does not possess the power of a monarch to cast aside immigration laws passed by Congress. See also IT stocks rise up to 5% as US judge temporarily blocks ban on H-1B visa.

Palantir Admits to Helping ICE Deport Immigrants While Trying to Prove It Doesn’t

Vice: Palantir responded to Amnesty International with a letter of its own—a master class in hair-splitting that hit familiar points, used old arguments that have been dismissed, and accidentally admitted Palantir’s technology is used for deportations.

Trump administration puts up billboards of immigration violators in Pennsylvania

CNN: The Trump administration has put up billboards in Pennsylvania of immigration violators, an unprecedented move taken in a swing state a month before the presidential election. The plan targeting “sanctuary cities,” which limit cooperation between local law enforcement and federal immigration authorities, is in step with President Donald Trump’s law-and-order message.

ICE preparing targeted arrests in ‘sanctuary cities,’ amplifying president’s campaign theme

WaPo: The Immigration and Customs Enforcement operation, known informally as the “sanctuary op,” could begin in California as soon as later this week. It would then expand to cities including Denver and Philadelphia, according to two of the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to describe sensitive government law enforcement plans.

Trump administration wants to screen credit scores, tax returns of immigrants’ U.S. sponsors

Miami Herald: The proposed rule would require those who sponsor a green card for an immigrant to provide — along with the affidavit form — credit reports and credit scores, certified copies of income tax returns for the last three years, and bank account information, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services said on Thursday.

“The Cruelty Is the Point”: U.S. Still Denying Protection to Severely Ill People With No Legal Status—Despite Announcing Otherwise

Ms.: Remarkably, USCIS announced on September 19, 2019 that deferred action was reinstated by USCIS. Despite the reinstatement, the outcome in deferred action cases we handled or tracked across the country continue to raise concerns.

Federal Agency Will Pay $336K in Legal Fees, Ending Immigrant Minors’ Abortion Rights Case

NLJ: After three years of litigation over the Trump administration’s policy of restricting undocumented minors’ access to abortion, the government on Tuesday agreed to change its policy and to pay more than $330,000 in legal fees and costs to the American Civil Liberties Union, which initiated the challenge.

New Jersey Doubles Immigrant Legal Representation Budget

DocumentedNY: New Jersey had no such program until last year, until Murphy allocated $3.1 million to hire lawyers. Now, he’s doubled that figure to more than $6 million.

NY City Council Announces $28.4 Million for Immigrant Services

City Council: The Council funding includes $3.25 million for the successful program, CUNY Citizenship Now!, which provides free legal services to assist New Yorkers and their families as they navigate the application process to become U.S. citizens. The Council funds also include $16.6 million for the New York Immigrant Family Unity Project (NYIFUP), the nation’s first public defender system to assist detained immigrant facing deportation proceedings. In addition, the City Council designated almost $4 million to fund legal representation services for unaccompanied minors separated from their families and who are facing immigration proceedings.

Changes to VAWA and T-Visas: DHS Proposed Rule on Collection of Biometrics

ImmProf: Rather than attempting to reduce fraud, the proposed rule seems designed to intimidate applicants from applying and increase the burden if they decide to do so. This invidious motivation can be seen more clearly in the proposed rule’s seemingly random attempt to change the framework for assessing the Good Moral Character of VAWA and T-visa applicants. Instead of presumptions and letters from respected law enforcement officers, these petitioners would be subject to DNA collection and associated background checks in a determination of their Good Moral Character.

LITIGATION/CASELAW/RULES/MEMOS

SCOTUS grants cert on asylum credibility case Barr v. Dai

SCOTUSblog: (1) Whether a court of appeals may conclusively presume that an asylum applicant’s testimony is credible and true whenever an immigration judge or the Board of Immigration Appeals adjudicates an application without making an explicit adverse credibility determination; and (2) whether the court of appeals violated the remand rule as set forth in INS v. Ventura when it determined in the first instance that the respondent, Ming Dai, was eligible for asylum and entitled to withholding of removal.

District Court Issues Preliminary Injunction Halting Implementation of USCIS Fee Rule

The district court stayed the implementation and the effective date of the August 2020 Final Rule, which changed the fee schedule and required new versions of several forms, in its entirety pending final adjudication of this matter. (ILRC et al., v. Wolf, et al., 9/29/20) AILA Doc. No. 20092990

USCIS Issues Update on 2020 Fee Rule Preliminary Injunction

USCIS issued an update stating that while the 2020 Fee Rule is enjoined, it will continue to accept USCIS forms with the current editions and current fees. AILA Doc. No. 20100190

District Court Orders DOS to Reserve 9,095 FY2020 Diversity Visa Numbers

The court ordered DOS to reserve 9,095 of the approximately 40,000 unused diversity visa numbers for future processing of both the named plaintiffs’ and class-members’ diversity visa applications, pending final adjudication of the matter. (Gomez, et al., v. Trump, et al., 9/30/20) AILA Doc. No. 20100100

District Court Issues Preliminary Injunction Halting Proclamation Suspending Entry of Nonimmigrants

The court granted the motion for preliminary injunction, preventing the government from implementing Section 2 of Presidential Proclamation 10052. Note, injunction only applies to named plaintiff groups. (National Association of Manufacturers et al., v. DHS, et al., 10/1/20) AILA Doc. No. 20100200

District Court Says Grant of TPS Constitutes an Admission for Adjustment of Status Purposes and Qualifies as a New Entry

The federal district court in Minnesota held that a grant of Temporary Protected Status (TPS) under INA §244a constitutes an admission for purposes of adjustment of status, and that such an admission qualifies as a new entry. (Hernandez de Gutierrez, et al. v. Barr, et al., 9/28/20) AILA Doc. No. 20092935

CA1 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Ecuadorian Petitioner Who Feared Harm from Brother Involved in Narcotics Trafficking

The court held that the record supported the BIA’s and IJ’s conclusion that family ties did not motivate the petitioner’s persecution at the hands of his adopted older brother, even though those ties brought the petitioner into proximity with his persecutor. (Loja-Tene v. Barr, 9/21/20) AILA Doc. No. 20100141

CA1 Upholds Asylum Denial to Honduran Petitioner Who Feared Attacks Motivated by His Father’s Gang Affiliation

The court held that the petitioner did not meet his burden of showing that the government of Honduras was unwilling or unable to protect him, where the evidence in the record indicated that the police had investigated the threats and attacks against him. (Gómez-Medina v. Barr, 9/15/20)AILA Doc. No. 20100140

CA2 Says Conviction for Third-Degree Criminal Possession of Stolen Property in New York Is an Aggravated Felony

The court upheld the BIA’s determination that the petitioner’s conviction for third-degree criminal possession of stolen property in violation of New York Penal Law §165.50 was an aggravated felony offense under INA §101(a)(43)(G). (Santana v. Barr, 9/18/20) AILA Doc. No. 20100206

CA2 Finds Petitioner’s Conviction in New York for Sexual Abuse in the First Degree Was an Aggravated Felony

The court held that the petitioner’s conviction under New York Penal Law §130.65(3) for sexual abuse in the first degree constituted an aggravated felony under INA §101(a)(43)(A). (Rodriguez v. Barr, 9/18/20) AILA Doc. No. 20100142

CA3 Finds District Court Lacked Jurisdiction to Review Appellant’s Challenges to the Execution of His Removal Order

Where the appellant had raised two challenges to the execution of his removal order, the court found that he had pursued his claims in the wrong proceeding, and reversed and remanded to the district court with instructions to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction. (Tazu v. Att’y Gen., 9/14/20) AILA Doc. No. 20100209

USCIS Issues Policy Guidance on Inadmissibility Based on Membership in a Totalitarian Party

USCIS issued policy guidance to address inadmissibility based on membership in or affiliation with a totalitarian party in the context of adjustment of status applications. The guidance provides an overview of the inadmissibility determination, evidence, burden of proof, exceptions, and waivers. AILA Doc. No. 20100201

DOS Provides Information on National Interest Exceptions for Certain Travelers from Europe

DOS announced that certain business travelers, investors, treaty traders, academics, students, and journalists from the Schengen Area, the U.K., and Ireland may qualify for National Interest Exceptions under Presidential Proclamations 9993 (Schengen Area) and 9996 (U.K., Ireland). Updated 10/1/20. AILA Doc. No. 20071733

EOIR Launches Immigration Court Online Resource (ICOR) and Pro Bono Portal

EOIR announced the launch of the Immigration Court Online Resource (ICOR), which provides resources on immigration proceedings before EOIR, and the Pro Bono Portal, which allows for the initiation and management of applications to be included in the EOIR List of Pro Bono Legal Service Providers. AILA Doc. No. 20100139

RESOURCES

EOIR Immigration Court Online Resource (Not to be confused with the EOIR virtual law library and country conditions)

EOIR Pro Bono Portal

CBP Did Not Adequately Oversee FY 2019 Appropriated Humanitarian Funding September 28, 2020 OIG-20-78

Practice Alert: Advising Clients Concerning Impact of Preliminary Stay in Gomez v. Trump on DV-2020 Selectees

E-Signatures: Six Uses in Immigration Practice

Practice Advisory: Requesting Congressional Liaison Assistance

CLINIC Summary of Immigrant Ineligibility for Federal Public Benefits

CLINIC TPS Terminations: Understanding the 9th Circuit’s Ramos Decision and How it Affects TPS Clients

ILRC § 1473.7 Motions to Vacate a Conviction or Sentence in California

ILRC Public Charge: Community Meeting PowerPoint with Presentation Script, and Sample Audience Questions and Answers

ILRC Public Charge: Community Messages

ILRC Public Charge and Advising Permanent Residents at the Time of Naturalization

ILRC Public Charge Outreach Toolkit

ILRC Public Charge: What the Community Needs to Know

ILRC The Rights of Lawful Permanent Residents (Fact Sheet)

Resources Related to Presidential Proclamations Temporarily Suspending Entry of Certain Immigrants and Nonimmigrants into the United States

MPI: College-Educated Immigrants in the United States

EVENTS

10/5/20 Green Light Law Training

10/07/20 Conceptualizing Migrant Farmworker Rights in Asia

10/6/20 Public Charge Updates

10/06/20 Medical Abuse and Neglect in Immigration Detention

10/6/20-10/27/20 Webinar Series: Understanding and Preparing Waivers

10/7/20 The Role of Local Elections in Shaping Immigration Policy

10/8/20 Racial Justice Film Series: The Fight, Q&A with Lee Gelernt

10/9/20 IACHR hearing to discuss the human rights situation of migrants, refugees, and unaccompanied children

10/9/2020 Conozca Sus Derechos: Como interactuar con la migra en su casa, en las calles, en sus automóviles, y más!

10/14/20 Immigration, Healthcare, and the Coronavirus Crisis

10/14/20 Understanding Retroactivity in Immigration Matters

10/15/20 Maintenance of Status: What You Need to Know in the Current Climate

10/16/20 New EAD Rules for Asylum Seekers

10/20/20 Immigration in the 2020 Election

10/20/20 Fee Rule Implementation: Effects on Survivor Relief

10/21/20 Advising TPS Clients in Light of Recent Developments

10/21/20 Rule of Law Forum – Preserving the Rule of Law in an Age of Disruption

10/21/20-10/23/20 Case Management Skills & Database Functions

10/21/20 Migrations and One Health: Human, Animal, and Environmental Interactions and Emerging Diseases

10/22/20 Non-LPR Cancellation: Overview of Eligibility & Proving Continuous Presence

10/23/20 Migration as Resistance: The Underground Railroad

10/27/20 Seeking Special Immigrant Juvenile Status in Removal Proceedings

10/28/20 Advanced U Visa Hot Topics

10/28/20 The Ecology of State-Building: Moving Capitals in Indonesia

10/29/20-10/30/20 2020 Crimes & Immigration Seminar

10/29/20 Presenting the Case

10/29/20 Marijuana: Bridging the Divide Between State and Federal Law

11/4/20 Program Strategies for Removal Defense Practice

11/10/20 Pursuing Immigration Pro Bono Opportunities in Private Practice

11/11/20 Climate Change and Oceanic Migrations

11/12/20 Defying Non-Reviewability: How to Proceed After a Consular Denial

11/17/20 Make the Government Pay! Attorney fees in Immigration

11/17/20 Employment-Based Immigration Opportunities for Immigrant Youth

11/18/20 Applying for Asylum and Related Relief for Clients with Convictions

11/24/20 VAWA Self-Petitioning Fundamentals

12/2/20 Migration, Climate Change, and Human Adaptation

12/2/20 An Overview of Naturalization

12/3/20 Representing Permanent Residents in LPR Cancellation Cases

12/3/20-12/4/20 53rd Annual Immigration and Naturalization Institute

12/8/20 Litigating Your Way Out of Delay

12/9/20 Public Charge in Consular Processing

12/15/20 Crimes Involving Moral Turpitude

12/16/20 LPRs and Public Charge

12/16/20 Program Strategies for Removal Defense Practice

2/4/21 Basic Immigration Law 2021: Business, Family, Naturalization and Related Areas

2/5/21 Asylum, Special Immigrant Juvenile Status, Crime Victim, and Other Immigration Relief 2021

ImmProf

Monday, October 5, 2020

Immigrantly, A Podcast

PBS Documentary on Proposition 187 and Change in Latinx Voting in California

USCIS Issues Policy Guidance Regarding Inadmissibility Based on Membership in a Totalitarian Party

Immigration Article of the Day: A Domestic Reign of Terror by Ediberto Roman

Sunday, October 4, 2020

VP ordered borders closed after CDC experts refused

How a 1965 immigration law forever changed the makeup of America

‘Overlooked’: Asian American Jobless Rate Surges But Few Take Notice

TRUMP’S TURN FROM IMMIGRATION TO THE ENEMY WITHIN: Trump’s shift from demonizing immigrants to targeting leftists is straight out of the fascist playbook.

Saturday, October 3, 2020

From The Bookshelves–The Good Immigrant: 26 Writers Reflect on America

ICE Launches Billboard Campaign Targeting “Criminal Aliens”

Secretly recorded tapes show Melania Trump’s frustration at criticism for family separation policy

Friday, October 2, 2020

Suprme Court to Review Asylum Credibility Decisions

Court Halts Trump’s COVID-19 Work Visa Ban

Thursday, October 1, 2020

UK Considers Off-Shoring Asylum Seekers

College-Educated Immigrants in the United States

The Beat Goes On: DHS Tightens Affidavit of Support Requirements

President’s Report to Congress on the Proposed Refugee Admissions for Fiscal Year 2021

60 Minutes: Why a private section of the border wall is allegedly failing

Wednesday, September 30, 2020

Take Back Tech fellowships relating to immigration

Immigration Article of the Day: Undocumented Activism and Minor Politics: Inside the Cramped Political Spaces of Deportation Defense Campaigns by Austin Kocher and Angela Stusse

Guest Post by Hunter Knapp: DHS Proposed Rule on Collection of Biometrics

Immigration Revelation: A Podcast

From the Bookshelves: Inventing Latinos: A New Story of American Racism by Laura E. Gómez

Duke Law Immigration Speaker Series

ICE to Raid Sanctuary Cities

Tuesday, September 29, 2020

Immigration fee hikes blocked by federal court

Presidential Debate and Immigration

Gallup: World Grows Less Accepting of Migrants

Implications of Judge Amy Coney Barrett’s textualism, deference to executive for immigration law

Immigration Article of the Day: Distancing Refugees by Geoffrey Heeren

Monday, September 28, 2020

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

Wow! Imagine how much time and money could be saved, and problems solved rather than aggravated, by a Government that actually provided due process, honored human rights, promoted equal justice for all, and respected the rule of law and the proper role of courts!

This Fall, vote like your life and the future of humanity depend on ousting Trump and the GOP! Because they do!

PWS

10-06-20

U.S. JUDGE 👨‍⚖️ 🇺🇸⚖️ THWARTS ICE 🏴‍☠️ EFFORT TO REMOVE INDONESIAN ASYLUM APPLICANT – “Siahaan’s attorneys, Elsy Ramos Velasquez and Patrick Taurel, had argued the arrest was made under false pretenses, without a warrant and in violation of ICE’s policy that typically prohibits agents from making arrests on church property.”

Meagan Flynn
Morning Mix Reporter
WashPost
Photo From Twitter

https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/social-issues/siahaan-immigration-deportation/2020/10/03/ec7f2380-04c2-11eb-897d-3a6201d6643f_story.html

By

Meagan Flynn

Oct. 3, 2020 at 3:50 p.m. EDT

A federal judge in Maryland has granted an undocumented Indonesian immigrant temporary reprieve from deportation, ruling Friday evening that immigration authorities cannot remove him from the country until he has a chance to pursue religious asylum.

Binsar Siahaan, a 52-year-old father to two U.S. citizens, attracted considerable support from faith-based activists nationwide after he was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement last month at his home on the grounds of Glenmont United Methodist Church in Silver Spring, Md. He and his wife, also an undocumented Indonesian immigrant, work there as church caretakers.

ICE arrested an undocumented immigrant on church grounds. They lied to coax him out, family and attorney say.

Siahaan’s attorneys, Elsy Ramos Velasquez and Patrick Taurel, had argued the arrest was made under false pretenses, without a warrant and in violation of ICE’s policy that typically prohibits agents from making arrests on church property. They also argued that Siahaan, who is Christian, should not be deported to majority-Muslim Indonesia until he has a chance to fully pursue religious asylum.

On Friday, U.S. District Judge Paul Grimm agreed, granting Siahaan a preliminary injunction that blocks ICE from removing him from the country until the Board of Immigration Appeals, or a higher federal court, makes a ruling on his pending appeal. Siahaan is being held at a detention center in Georgia, where he was transferred from Baltimore to await deportation. Grimm also ordered ICE to bring him back to Baltimore, where he will remain in custody closer to his family.

“When the ruling came down, we were really relieved,” said the Rev. Kara Scroggins, pastor at Glenmont United Methodist. “We’re glad that he’s closer to home at the detention facility in Baltimore, but we’re going to keep fighting until he’s home with his family.”

ICE could not immediately be reached for comment Saturday but previously said Siahaan was arrested “after he received full due process in the nation’s immigration courts.”

. . . .

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

Read the full article at the link.

Hats off to the litigation team and to U.S. District Judge Paul Grimm! By ordering ICE to return Siahaan to Maryland, rather than detaining him in Georgia, generally known as one of the worst places in the “New American Gulag,” Judge Grimm took the kind of effective action necessary to stop the abusive actions of ICE and to guarantee real due process!

In a functioning system with an independent U.S. Immigration Court comprised of Judges with expertise in asylum and human rights laws and a commitment to due process and the rule of law, Immigration Judges could take the actions necessary to protect fundamental rights and hold ICE accountable without constant resort to the U.S. District Courts. A “captive” Immigration Court, where Immigration Judges are subservient to Billy the Bigot Barr and pressured to act as “ICE enforcement in robes” ill-serves the national interest! It’s also highly inefficient and wasteful of public resources!

Thanks to my good friend Deb Sanders for bringing this incident to my attention!

Due Process Forever!

PWS

10-05-20

👨🏻‍⚖️JUDICIARY: GOP Appointed Senior USD Judge John D. Bates Shows What We Used To Expect From Our Federal Judiciary Before The Era Of Biased Righty Zealots — Slams Trump/Billy Bogus Racist “Presidential Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice,” Stuffs Release Of Trump White Nationalist Political Propaganda In Guise Of “Report!”

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/trump-law-enforcement-task-force_n_5f75fd84c5b6c35a64194768

Ryan J.Reilly reports for HuffPost:

A federal judge on Thursday ordered the Trump administration not to release a report by the Presidential Commission on Law Enforcement and the Administration of Justice, finding that the group ― comprised entirely of current and former members of law enforcement ― had been “far from transparent.”

Senior U.S. District Judge John Bates, a George W. Bush appointee, issued a 45-page ruling finding that commission ― which President Donald Trump announced with fanfare at a police conference last year ― had violated the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA), which requires that committees be “fairly balanced” in the viewpoints represented.

Attorney General William Barr said there was a need to hear from a “diversity of backgrounds and perspectives,” but the commission was full of law enforcement officials. Bates’ order requires Barr “to ensure the Commission has a fairly balanced membership.”

Last month, as HuffPost previously reported, an elected prosecutor quit one of the commission’s working groups because he worried that it was “providing cover” for a predetermined law-and-order agenda that “will only widen the divisions in our nation.”

Bates wrote that the commission’s membership “consists entirely of current and former law enforcement officials” and that no commissioner “has a criminal defense, civil rights, or community organization background.”

“Especially in 2020, when racial justice and civil rights issues involving law enforcement have erupted across the nation, one may legitimately question whether it is sound policy to have a group with little diversity of experience examine, behind closed doors, the sensitive issues facing law enforcement and the criminal justice system in America today,” he wrote.

. . . .

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

Read the full article at the link.

YOUR tax dollars being squandered by corrupt AG on White Nationalist political propaganda. But, given that Billy the Bigot is siphoning off money from the public to fund the campaign of a racist President and his racist GOP “party,” that should be little surprise!

Billy is a one-man illegality machine. 🏴‍☠️ But, rarely does a Federal Judge call out his personal illegal and unethical conduct this clearly!

Due Process Forever!

PWS

10-02-20

😎⚖️👍🇺🇸 GOOD GUYS WIN AGAIN! – Federal Judge Slams Regime’s Absurdist Anti-TPS Interpretation, Reverses Matter of H-G-G-!

Brittany Bakken, Kelsey Friberg, and I are thrilled to share with you that Matter of HGG has been reversed. Of course, the government will appeal. Nevertheless, a great way to end a Monday.

Best regards,

David L. Wilson, Esq.

Managing Attorney

Wilson Law Group

Fullo demission here:

HGG – reversed!

_____________________________________________________________________________

Hats off to these fierce “Warriors of The New Due Process Army” 🏆⭐️🥇

David Wilson, Esquire
Managing Attorney
Wilson Law Group, Source: wilsonlg.com

Brittany Bakken, Esquire
Senior Attorney
Wilson Law Group
Source: wilsonlg.com

Kelsey Friberg, Esquire
Associate Attorney
Wilson Law Group
Source: wilsonlg.com

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

The case is Hernandez v. Barr, USDC D MN

Not only was the USCIS position a violation of the plain meaning of the statute, as found by Chief Judge Tunheim, it is totally stupid from a policy standpoint! With hundreds of thousands of law-abiding TPS recipients in the U.S., integrated into our society, and contributing to our economy, a rational, non-racist, non-xenophobic Administration would welcome and utilize ways of integrating them into our legal immigration system. Instead, the Trump kakistocracy, wastes time, squanders resources, and violates the law looking for bogus ways to “get to no.” How dumb and counterproductive can it get!

Due Process Forever! Kakistocracy never!

PWS

09-30-20

KAKISTOCRACY KORNER🤮👎: “WOLFMAN THE ILLEGAL” CALLED OUT AGAIN – U.S. Judge Stuffs USCIS’s Outrageously Unjustified Fee Increases – Wolfie’s “Illegality” Key To Victory For Good Guys! — ImmigrationProf Blog Reports!

Trump Regime Emoji — Trump Regime, Thieves Thrive on the Public Dole!

Tuesday, September 29, 2020

Immigration fee hikes blocked by federal court

By Immigration Prof

Share

Days before they were to go into effect, a federal court in the Northern District of California issued a national injunction blocking a dramatic fee hike for appliations for naturalized citizenship, permanent residency, asylum, and access to other immigration benefits. The new fees would have made immigration benefits unattainable for many. It would have nearly doubled citizenship from $640 to $1,170; increased lawful permanent residency and related application fees from $1,125 to $2,270; and added a $50 fee for asylum applications (the first time a fee has been assessed for asylum applications). The rule would have also eliminated most fee waivers for immigrants who cannot afford to pay the fees.

Judge Jeffrey White ruled that the nonprofit organizations that had challenged the fee increases would be likely to prevail in showing that Wolf’s appointment as Acting Director of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, without Senate confirmation, violated the rules of succession. As a result, the fees ordered under his stewardship cannot take effect while the litigation progresses. Similar reasoning had been used in a separate lawsuit regarding Ken Cucinelli and his asylum directives.

MHC

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

MHC = Professor Ming Hsu Chen one of the all-star ⭐️ team of bloggers at ImmigrationProf Blog. Thanks, Professor, for this timely item! These illegal and clearly punitive fee increases were scheduled to into effect at the beginning of October!

This is also a great illustration of why, totally contrary to the nonsense GOP party line and folks like GOP-owned Justices Thomas and Gorsuch, the nationwide injunction is an essential tool for achieving justice. According to the GOP’s false dogma, plaintiffs, many pro se, or appearing with pro bono or “low bono” representation, should be required to win their cases before over 650 U.S. District Judges and in 12 Circuits to get effective relief from the Trump regime’s unrelenting war on our Constitution and the rule of law.

While Trump and his GOP toadies and sycophants spout BS platitudes about “law and order” the truth is simple: This is a party of arrogant, immoral “scofflaws” from top to bottom!

This Fall, vote like your life and our future as a nation depend on it! Because they do! Vote the GOP kakistocracy out at every level! Don’t let their dark & dishonest plans become YOUR future!☠️⚰️

PWS

09-30-20

“My Trials: Inside America’s Deportation Factories” — Round Table Star 🌟 Hon. Paul Grussendorf Releases Revised Edition Of His Acclaimed Book 🏆 — Help Him Self-Publish Here!

Paul Grussendorf is organizing this fundraiser.

Creative Arts, Music & Film

I am a lawyer specializing in asylum and refugee law. I have taught refugee law at George Washington University, University of San Francisco and Howard University. I have worked with the U.S. government and the UN Refugee Agency in refugee resettlement all over the world, most recently in Rwanda until COVID shut down our interviews.

In 2011 I self-published my legal memoir, My Trials: Inside America’s Deportation Factories, focusing upon the deportation system and my time as an immigration judge. It is time to update the book, given all the changes and destructive policies that have occured in recent years to our asylum system. The book received great reviews: “My Trials is both a scathing indictment of a broken immigration system that sends vulnerable immigrants back to perilous situations from which they fled, and a heartfelt call for a return to the values upon which our nation was founded.” American Immigration Lawyers Association. It was endorsed by renowned criminal defense attorney Gerry Spence.

The budget will include $2000 for editing and formatting, and $3000 for a limited publicity campaign. I am currently working with an editor to make the book available on Amazon by first week of October, so funds are essential now. It will be available on all other platforms mid-October.

This book has been a labor of love and education, and I have not profited from it. I will be tremendously grateful for assistance to make this updated book available at this critical junction in our nation’s history.

Click here it contribute to Paul’s “Go Fund Me” Campaign:

https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-paul-selfpublish-his-immigration-book?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=p_cf+share-flow-1

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

Judge, educator, public servant, humanitarian, author, role model, tireless advocate for due process, fundamental fairness, and equal justice for all: Thanks, Paul, for all you have done and continue to do. It’s a total honor to serve with you on the Round Table!🛡⚔️👍🏼

PWS

09-27-20

WHAT TOOK THEM SO LONG ⁉️⁉️⁉️⁉️⁉️— “Courtside” Has Been “Outing” The Outrageous Scofflaw Conduct Of The Trump Regime Almost From Its Inception — Finally, It’s Dawning On The WashPost & Other “Mainstream” Media That We Have A Rogue Regime & An Anti-Democracy Party Seeking To Dismantle Our Republic & Replace It With A White Nationalist Kakistocracy!

Trump Clown — U Donald J. Trump
Famous American Clown
(Officially titled “Ass Clown”)
Artist: Scott Scheidly
Orlando, FL
Reproduced by permission

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/09/18/trump-law-checks-balances/

From the WashPost Editorial Board:

President Trump promised in 2016 that he would protect the Constitution’s “Article I, Article II, Article XII.” (There is no Article XII.) Instead, he has shown how fragile the constitutional order can be when a president does not respect the rule of law. He has not grown into the office; instead, he has learned how to more effectively abuse its powers. The damage of a second term might be irreparable.

Our Democracy in Peril

Part seven of a series of editorials on the damage President Trump has caused — and the danger he would pose in a second term.

A president’s core responsibility is to use the awesome power of his office fairly and with neutrality. Mr. Trump has shown that he has a different understanding: The law is a weapon with which to reward loyalists, punish enemies and frighten everyone else to fall in line.

His distortion of the criminal justice system began within months of his inauguration. When FBI Director James B. Comey tried to explain the proper relationship between the president and the FBI, Mr. Trump demanded loyalty and asked the FBI director to go easy on his former national security adviser Michael Flynn. Mr. Comey declined to promise the former or do the latter, and the president fired him.

The tumult that Mr. Comey’s dismissal elicited might have taught a lesson to a more sensible person: There is substance and expectation behind the presidential oath’s pledge to faithfully execute the laws. Mr. Trump did not learn that lesson. His pick for attorney general, Jeff Sessions, properly recused himself from the federal investigation into Russia’s attack on the 2016 U.S. presidential election — and any coordination with the Trump campaign — leading to the appointment of special counsel Robert S. Mueller III. So Mr. Trump viciously attacked Mr. Sessions, and then fired him, too.

In part because the president’s staff more effectively restrained him back then, the special counsel was allowed to complete his investigation relatively unhindered. But Mr. Trump had no patience for standard Justice Department procedure — recusal when conflicts of interests may exist, special care to avoid even the appearance of impropriety. He reportedly complained that he needed a “Roy Cohn” at the Justice Department — that is, an aggressive protector of his personal interests. So, after firing Mr. Sessions, he hired an attorney general with no apparent concern about the appearance or reality of impropriety, William P. Barr.

Whether out of ideological fervor or fear of Mr. Trump’s wrath, Mr. Barr has aided the president’s friends, hurt his enemies and vociferously attacked anyone who has found these actions untoward. Mr. Barr sicced handpicked prosecutors on the Russia probe, despite independent investigations concluding it was warranted. Then Mr. Barr intervened to lessen the charging recommendation for Trump friend and convicted felon Roger Stone. Mr. Barr also ordered charges against Mr. Flynn, the admitted felon whom Mr. Trump had asked Mr. Comey to help, to be dropped. Yet another Justice Department official, FBI General Counsel Dana Boente, was fired after he opposed cooperating with the plot to clear Mr. Flynn.

Mr. Trump waited until after Senate Republicans voted to dismiss articles of impeachment in February to do more of his own dirty work. His White House already had issued illegal orders to prevent current or former executive branch officers from turning over documents or giving testimony to Congress, betting correctly that lawmakers would not be able to litigate the issue in time for the information they sought to matter. Free of the threat of removal, he committed revenge firings of impeachment witnesses who had only done their jobs and followed the law, including patriots such as Army Lt. Col. Alexander S. Vindman — and, for good measure, Mr. Vindman’s brother, who had nothing to do with impeachment.

Mr. Trump fired intelligence community inspector general Michael Atkinson for forwarding to Congress a whistleblower complaint that had implicated the president in his scheme to use public funds to extract political help from a foreign government. The message was clear: The lawful performance of one’s duties is secondary to protecting the president.

Mr. Trump commuted Mr. Stone’s sentence so that his friend would not have to serve one day, mocking the notion of equal justice before the law. He fired the inspector general tapped to monitor the administration’s coronavirus response programs, for reasons that are unclear, beyond his aversion to authentic oversight. The White House has inquisitors dedicated to rooting out federal staff who are insufficiently loyal to Mr. Trump, and they appear to be planning a broader purge after the November election.

Because the courts move slowly, the president discovered that he can sustain even the most egregious stonewalling and violations for years. The remaining checks would be Congress, but Republicans have almost uniformly chosen subservience to Mr. ‘Trump over fealty to the Constitution, and the executive branch, but Mr. Trump has sought to fire or cow anyone who would stand in the way of his lawlessness.

Last month brought two bright warning signs that the president feels ever-less inhibited. The Government Accountability Office found that Chad Wolf’s appointment as acting director of the Department of Homeland Security is illegal, yet Mr. Wolf is still there, overseeing a department that assisted in Mr. Trump’s alarming overreaction to protesters in Portland, Ore. Mr. Trump then used the White House for his Republican National Convention acceptance speech, which almost certainly resulted in violations of a law that prohibits federal resources from being used for political purposes. The New York Times reported that Mr. Trump “relished the fact that no one could do anything to stop him.”

Americans have long been taught that the U.S. political system has effective checks and balances. But in the past years, a frightening truth has emerged. Much of that balance has depended on the good character of the president, and there are surprisingly few ways to check a malign president from abusing the enormous powers of his office. Mr. Trump is committed to using those powers for his own personal ends, and he has slowly but surely chipped away at any limitations. How many would remain after four more years?

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

One reason it’s taken some folks so long to raise the alarm is because they lack understanding of our immigration and human rights laws and their foundational relationship to our democracy. Those of us who do, sounded the alarm early on!

The lack of progressive immigration and human rights expertise and influence across all three branches of our Government and in much of the media has been a major factor in the rapid deterioration of our democracy. The progressive talent is out there in abundance; it’s just in the wrong place, outside of the power structure.

While I agree with the Post’s “bottom line,” I disagree somewhat with the analysis of why our Judicial System has failed so miserably when we most needed it. It’s not just an institutional weakness of “slowness;” it’s a defect in the qualifications, ideology, and character of too many GOP-appointed Federal Judges including the majority of our Supremes.

Yes, the wheels of justice can grind slowly. But, there is no institutional bar to integrity, creative emergency responses, or putting ideology aside to “do the right thing” for the rule of law and for human decency and human dignity. It’s happened before; but not this time around, with our nation in peril.

We saw an early example of the lack of legal and moral leadership on our highest Court with the invidious and blatantly unconstitutional and outright fraudulent “Muslim Ban.”

The lower Federal Courts reacted immediately with proper urgency to “just say no” to this invidious, unconstitutional, dishonest political gimmick. Because their answer clearly was correct, the Supremes had only to reinforce that message to the regime — that Trump would be required to operate within the law and to conduct himself with professionalism, honesty, and the same modicum of human decency exhibited by all other Presidents. This should have been “a piece of cake” and a golden moment for the Court to assert its independence and reinforce human decency regardless of ideology.

Rather than upholding and reinforcing this courageous and timely conduct by their subordinate jurists, the Supremes improperly and incorrectly undermined them. Then, after unnecessary delay, they let the Trump bigot/scofflaws/liars off the hook. The rout of honesty, human dignity, and our Constitution was on!

Since then, the Roberts Court has engaged in a “pattern or practice” of improper intervention to disable timely actions by the lower courts and thereby aid the White Nationalist regime’s illegal, racism-driven actions and unethical legal tactics. Nowhere has that been worse than in the gross and deadly erosion of immigrants’ rights and human rights. Real human beings continue to suffer grotesque degradations and die because some Justices wouldn’t do their jobs!

Roberts & Co. should spend some time suffering with their fellow humans in the squalid camps in Mexico they helped create; in dangerous and disgusting DHS detention that falls below standards we would inflict on convicted felons; in “baby jails;” on flights returning refugees to danger after not even taking the time to fairly listen and evaluate their claims; in “safe” third countries that are actually functionally war zones without functioning legal systems, let alone asylum systems, where corrupt regimes have neither the interest nor the ability to protect those being persecuted; or in our “Modern Star Chambers” known as “Immigration Courts” where maliciously incompetent management and a systemic contempt for due process actually threatens the lives of not only migrants, but also lawyers on both sides, the “judges,” and “court” staff.

Too many “righty judges” exist outside the reality of the daily human misery inflicted on others by their intransigence and warped anti-humanity ideology! Even some so-called “liberal” judges too often live in an “intellectual bubble” far removed from the unending ugliness and human despair daily unfolding at the “retail level of our justice system” — known as Immigration “Courts” that these days are nothing remotely resembling actual “courts.”

Those rights of the most vulnerable among us being ground into mush are all of our rights to equal justice and fundamental fairness under law. The failure to stand up for equal justice under law and social justice for all is currently ripping our nation apart and fueling a resurgence of Jim Crow racism.

Life tenure insures that our judiciary will only change over time. But, more anti-democracy, right wing jurists on our Federal Bench will exponentially decrease our chances of saving our republic. And, we can be sure that the Trump/Mitch pick to replace Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg will push American Justice to the precipice.

We need fundamental changes in what type of persons with what type of values control and comprise all three Branches of our Government. We must start now, before it is too late. No system will stand up to the actions of individuals who don’t believe in its fundamental Constitutional guarantees of due process, fundamental fairness, and equal justice for all persons under law!

It’s also long past time for future Democratic Administrations aggressively to embrace and elevate the pool of tremendous legal expertise, administrative talent, moral and intellectual courage, and proven problem solving ability now out there in the private, academic, and NGO human rights and immigrants’ rights community!

These are the “anti-Stephen-Millers,” “anti Billy-the-Bigots,” and “anti-Wolfmans,” who would strive to make our Constitutional promises finally come alive for all Americans, insure equality for all before the law, and make our nation a better place for everyone, not just the privileged and powerful. Government utilizing the skills of smart, practical, humane problem solvers would also be much more efficient in spending our tax dollars than the current Government of bigots and incompetents driven by extreme bias, an exclusive vision, and highly counterproductive ideologies!

This Fall, vote like your life and the future of our Constitutional republic depend on it. Because they most certainly do!

PWS

09-19-20

CRIME WATCH: NATION OF CHILD ABUSERS: Trump Regime Illegally Orbits Nearly 9,000 Kids To Potential Doom Without Due Process!

Second Wave
Artist: John Darrow
Reproduced under license

https://apple.news/AA4Yv2KHFSS6YVKxlnKiD0A

Catherine E. Shoichet, reports for CNN:

A court declaration Friday from US Border Patrol Deputy Chief Raul Ortiz revealed the number, which previously hadn’t been released to the public.

Since the Trump administration invoked a public health law to implement new restrictions at the border on March 20, the agency has expelled more than 159,000 people, according to Ortiz. That figure, Ortiz says, included 8,800 children who were traveling alone and 7,600 family members.

The Border Patrol official’s filing, first reported by CBS News, reveals new details about who has been kicked out of the US under the sweeping public health restrictions, which largely bar migrants from entering the country.

The declaration was filed as part of the government’s appeal of a recent court ruling over a controversial aspect of the coronavirus restrictions: the increasing use of hotels to detain migrant kids rather than licensed and monitored facilities.

Immigrant and civil rights advocates have warned that the secretive system is putting kids in danger. They have criticized the administration for using public health claims as a pretext to impose harsh immigration restrictions.

Last week, US District Judge Dolly M. Gee ruled that detaining migrant children in hotels wasn’t safe and did not “adequately account for the vulnerability of unaccompanied minors in detention.” She has ordered the government to stop the practice by September 15.

. . . .

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

Read the rest of Catherine’s report at the link.

The cowardly and dishonest performance of the U.S. legal system, failure to live up to our Constitutional responsibilities, and welching on our international agreements will haunt us for generations. Eventually, history will document the full extent of the legal and human rights abuses carried out by the Trump regime while the political and judicial branches of Government stood by and watched.

History has not been kind to the Dred Scott decision, Jim Crow politicians, and the many citizens who empowered Jim Crow and institutionalized racism. Likewise, the modern day Jim Crows of the GOP, their supporters, and Federal Judges who help carry out “Dred Scottification” of the other, child abuse, and tormenting the most vulnerable among us in their hour of greatest need will also face an historical reckoning. Their smug, arrogant, immoral, and fundamentally cowardly abandonment of justice and human decency for those seeking legal protection will “live in infamy.”

This Fall, vote like your life and the future of humanity depend on it. Because they do!

PWS

09-15-20

LAW & ORDER: “ILLEGAL” GOES ON MULTI-STATE CRIME SPREE, LEAVING TRAIL OF CRIMES AGAINST HUMANITY! — “WOLFMAN” STILL AT LARGE! — Believed To Be Armed With Racist, Nativist Agenda & Extreme Danger To Constitution & Human Dignity!

Chad Wolf Toon — Chad “Wolfman” Wolf
Wanted for Impersonating a Cabinet Officer
Creative Commons License
Credit: DonkeyHotey at https://flickr.com/photos/47422005@N04/50216420106.

If you see this man, don’t approach! Call ACLU immediately!

https://www.cnn.com/2020/09/14/politics/judge-chad-wolf/index.html

By Laura Ly and Paul LeBlanc, CNN

Updated 11:31 PM ET, Mon September 14, 2020

(CNN)A federal judge in Maryland on Friday ruled that Chad Wolf is likely unlawfully serving as acting secretary of the Department of Homeland Security and temporarily barred the Trump administration from enforcing new asylum restrictions on members of two immigration advocacy groups, according to court documents.

“In sum, the Court concludes that Plaintiffs are likely to demonstrate (former acting Homeland Security Secretary Kevin) McAleenan’s appointment was invalid under the agency’s applicable order of succession, and so he lacked the authority to amend the order of succession to ensure Wolf’s installation as Acting Secretary,” Judge Paula Xinis’ 69-page ruling said.

Xinis also wrote that “by extension, because Wolf filled the role of Acting Secretary without authority, he promulgated the challenged rules also ‘in excess of…authority,’ and not ‘in accordance with the law.'”

CNN has reached out to the department for comment.

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The preliminary finding that Wolf is likely unlawfully serving in his position came as a part of temporarily blocking two asylum rules while the lawsuit over those rules is heard. The case is ongoing.

CNN has previously reported that the Government Accountability Office found that Wolf and Ken Cuccinelli, the senior official performing the duties of deputy secretary, were appointed as part of an invalid order of succession.

. . . .

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

Read the rest of the article at the link.

A cruel, inhuman, and lawless regime targets America and humanity with its illegal, inhuman, racist agenda, spearheaded by a dangerous “illegal.”

The case is Casa De Maryland, Inc. v. Wolf.

Due Process Forever. The “illegals” of the Trump regime never!

PWS

09-15-20

SPLIT 9TH CIR. PANEL TO TPS HOLDERS: Black & Brown Lives Don’t Matter! — Dissenting Judge Morgan Christen Stands Up For Equal Justice, Against Trump’s Racism, White Nationalism, & Nativism Endorsed By Panel Colleagues!

Shithole Countries — Trump’s Words Need No Deciphering
Phil Roeder from Des Moines, IA, USA
Creative Commons License

https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-09-14/9thcircuit-immigrants-temporary-protected-status

Maura Dolan reports for the LA Times:

. . . .

“To the extent the TPS statute places constraints on the Secretary’s discretion, it does so in favor of limiting unwarranted designations or extensions of TPS,” wrote Callahan, an appointee of President George W. Bush. She was joined by Judge Ryan D. Nelson, an appointee of President Trump.

Judge Morgan Christen, an appointee of President Obama, dissented.

She said the Trump administration had changed policy and practice without public review. She described the administration’s action as “an abrupt and unexplained change.”

She noted that the lawsuit challenging the deportation notices said they were motivated by racial and ethnic bias.

Trump reportedly called Haiti and El Salvador “shithole countries” and characterized immigrants from Mexico and Central America as criminals and snakes.

“We cannot sweep aside the words that were actually used, and it would be worse for us to deny their meaning,” wrote Christen. “Some of the statements expressly referred to people, not to places. The President’s statements require no deciphering.”

A statement by the ACLU Foundation of Southern California, which represented the immigrants and their children, said the ruling would not immediately end temporary protected status.

Such holders from these countries will be permitted to maintain their status until at least February, and those from El Salvador until at least November.

The challengers said they would appeal the ruling to a larger panel of the 9th Circuit.

. . . .

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

Read Maura’s complete article at the link.

“The President’s statements require no deciphering.” Yup! The Federal Courts obviously know exactly what they are doing and what’s at stake when they blow by due process and equal protection to advance the Trump/Miller/Bar agenda of overt bigotry and racism, often supported by patently contrived or false narratives.

In the end, this will be decided by the election. Still, the disingenuous, racism-denying performances of Judges Callahan and Nelson show why the already failing U.S Judicial system will remain a problem no matter who wins the election. The only issue is whether it will just be a problem or, if Trump were re-elected, become an out of control cancer that will hasten the demise of our democratic republic.

The case is Ramos v. Wolf.

Due Process Forever!

PWS

09-14-20

Vote ‘em out, vote ‘em out, on every level! Return our nation to the rule of law, common sense, competency, and simple human decency.

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ROUND TABLE STAR 🌟 HON. SUE ROY REPORTS ON NJ AILA LITIGATION ABOUT IMMIGRATION COURTS⚖️!

By Hon. Sue Roy

Former U.S. Immigration Judge

Exclusive to Courtside

Oct. 8, 2020

Due Process Forever!

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Why Legal Representation Is Essential To Due Process For Asylum Seekers (In Fewer Than 200 Words)

By. Paul Wickham Schmidt

Retired U.S. Immigration Judge

Courtside Exclusive

Oct. 5, 2020

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