TOP UPDATES
Administration to Release Regulations Requiring Asylum Seekers to Remain in Mexico
HRF: “[T]he administration indicated that it plans to issue regulations to advance the provision in President Trump’s January 25 executive order that seeks to remove immigrants “to the territory from which they came” while they await immigration court hearings.”
ICE Re-arresting UACs
We recently received news that UACs are being rearrested by ICE and being taken back into custody. This includes UACs in removal proceedings and those with pending applications, such as SIJS or adjustment of status applications. ICE is specifically seeking UACs that have come in contact with local police. ICE’s special unit, Homeland Security Investigations (HSI), is seeking UACs that have:
a) a criminal history or prior arrest;
b) prior conviction;
c) plead to a violation;
d) received a citation (such as turnstile jumping and jaywalking).
DHS Targets Suspected Gang Members
Reuters: “U.S. immigration agents are planning nationwide raids [this] week to arrest, among others, teenagers who entered the country without guardians and are suspected gang members, in a widening of President Donald Trump's crackdown on illegal immigrants.”
Letter from ICE to Tahirih Justice Center Regarding the DHS-VINE System
In response to an inquiry from the Tahirih Justice Center, ICE says that it remains committed to safeguarding the information of victims of crime and that and the disclosure of any protected information has been inadvertent.
Travel Ban
SCOTUS issued a further order Wednesday. It denied the government’s motion seeking clarification on the previous order on the injunction. In short, the court said it would not intervene prior to the Ninth Circuits review of an injunction expanding the definition of close ties to the U.S.
Standards for Revoking Immigration Benefits
Cyrus Mehta makes an argument that the “Supreme Court’s Heightened Standard for Revoking Naturalization in Maslenjak v. United States Should Apply to All Immigration Benefits.”
CALLS TO ACTION
· Asylum Expert Witness Database - The Center for Gender & Refugee Studies (CGRS) is launching a new project—a searchable database of qualified and pre-vetted country specialists and health professionals who serve as expert witnesses to support asylum seekers in the United States. This service will be offered to attorneys and experts alike, free of charge. The Asylum Expert Witness Database is scheduled to go live in late 2017. Please send information about any recommended experts, including contact information, areas of expertise, and CVs, to CGRS at .
· Enforcement Budget: AILA is asking people to call congress to urge them to stop a funding bill for Trump’s ramped up immigration enforcement programs.
· Dream Act of 2017: AILA is calling for people to ask congress to support a bipartisan bill to defend Dreamers.
· Case example collection form (NYIC): “we have created a broad case example collection form. Please bookmark this page and, if and when you have a case that becomes problematic under the new administration, please take a few minutes to fill out this form.” NYIC is specifically looking for:
◦ Issues at ICE-ERO Check-In
◦ SIJS Application Issues
◦ Bad RFE or NOID
◦ Delays in Citizenship
◦ Unwarranted fraud allegations
◦ Abuse of discretion (including unwarranted denials)
◦ Problematic behavior by Office of the Chief Counsel
◦ Problems at the consulates
◦ Problem at Consulates
◦ ICE Arrest of UAC sponsors
◦ Gang Allegations (non-SIJS related)
RESOURCES
· Immigration Court Helpdesk Program - Attached calendar in English and Spanish.
· NYIC Listserves
o New York Legal Service Providers: This is the main listserv for all non-profit immigration lawyers in New York State. In addition to conversations on topics you all initiate, this is where Camille Mackler distributes news and updates, information on upcoming liaison meetings, minutes of said meetings, and much more. How to join: Email to ask. This list is only open to non-profit staff attorneys, DOJ Accredited Reps, and pro bono counsels that work on immigration issues. Only organizational emails (i.e. "dot-org", or "law-firm-dot-com") will be added. No personal emails such as gmail, hotmail, msn, aol, etc.
o New York Asylum: In addition to conversations on topics you all initiate, this is where I send new and updates specific to asylum only, as well as information on upcoming liaison meetings with the asylum offices and the minutes of said meetings. How to join: Same.
GOVERNMENT
Matter of IZAGUIRRE, 27 I&N Dec. 67 (BIA 2017)
An offense may be a "specified offense against a minor" within the meaning of section 111(7) of the Adam Walsh Child Protection and Safety Act of 2006, Pub. L. No. 109-248, 120 Stat. 587, 592, even if it involved an undercover police officer posing as a minor, rather than an actual minor.
Detention Budget
Politico reports that DHS requested $91 million in reprogrammed funds for detention beds this year, nearly a 5 percent increase over the $2 billion devoted to beds in 2017. Greg Chen, AILA’s Director of Government Relations, called it a “backdoor” way to ramp up deportations. AILA Doc. No. 17072199
Senators Urge DOS and DHS to Extend TPS Designations
On 7/18/17, a group of 26 senators sent a letter urging Department of State Secretary Rex Tillerson and Department of Homeland Security Secretary John Kelly to extend Temporary Protection Status (TPS) to the approximately 320,000 recipients from ten designated countries. AILA Doc. No. 17072041
Experts Urge Secretary Tillerson to Keep Refugee Program Within DOS
On 7/16/17, former diplomats and national security advisors urged DOS Secretary Rex Tillerson to keep the U.S. refugee admissions program within the Department of State’s (DOS) Bureau of Population.
AILA Doc. No. 17071862
EVENTS
· 7/25/17 Thinking Across Time: Researching USCIS Records – USCIS webinar
· 7/27/17 FTCA and other Civil Rights Claims Against ICE (Free) PLI
· 7/27/17 Managing the Credible Fear Interview AILA
· 7/31/17 Ethical Considerations for Attorneys Representing Detained Immigrants (Free) PLI
· 8/1/17 CBP, Electronic Devices, and Privacy at Ports of Entry AILA
· 8/4/17 FOIA Litigation to Obtain Client Files - The training will take place on August 4, 2017, from 10:00 to 11:30 a.m. at Cardozo Law, 55 Fifth Ave., Rm. 423, New York, NY. To attend, email Lindsay Nash at by Friday, July 28, and provide the name, affiliation, and email address of each person who plans to attend.
· 8/5/17 Bronx DA Clean Slate Program 9-4 @ 354 Fish Avenue
· 8/8/17 USCIS and Notices to Appear: What You Need to Know AILA
· 8/8/17 Immigration Practioners’ Symposium: Intersection of Criminal and Immigration Law - August 8, 2017 8:30AM-3:30PM, location: National Grid—1 Metro Tech Plaza (Auditorium), Brooklyn, NY 11201
· 8/22/17 The Perfect Plea Bargain: What Defense Counsel Wants You to Know AILA
· 8/24/17 FTCA and Other Civil Rights Claims - Immigration Enforcement & Damages Actions (Free) PLI
· 8/28/17 Best Practices Before the Asylum Office
· 8/29/17 Waivers of the Joint Filing Requirement in I-751 Cases AILA
ImmProf
Monday, July 24, 2017
· Wajahat Ali: My Grandfather, My "Bona Fide" Best Friend
Sunday, July 23, 2017
· Meme of the Day
Saturday, July 22, 2017
· DACA Recipient Helps UAC Obtain Asylum
· Dream Act of 2017 Introduced
· The Empire Strikes Back Continued: Trump Raids to Pursue Teen Immigrant Gang Members
· Your Playlist: Depeche Mode
Friday, July 21, 2017
· LATINO GROUP PULLS CONVENTION FROM TEXAS, BOYCOTTS STATE BECAUSE OF SB 4
· Immigration Article of the Day: Immigration Enforcement and Domination: An Indirect Argument for Much More Open Borders by Alex Sager
· Why Elections Matter: The Case of Francisco Rodriguez
· Ending DACA Could Cost States $Billions
· Trump's Mar-a-Lago Seeks Foreign Workers During "Made in America" Week
· Ted Talk: The refugee crisis is a test of our character
Thursday, July 20, 2017
· Jane Stoever: Mandatory Domestic Violence Reporting Laws Linked to Fear of Deportation
· Immigrant of the Day: Mai Neng Moua
· Driving While Black, Driving While Brown, Driving While Undocumented?
· President Trump, the Wall, and Immigration Policy: "Trump appears resigned to trying to remake the immigration system through a combination of executive power and rhetoric."
Wednesday, July 19, 2017
· Professor Peter Margulies: Refugee Executive Order Update: The Supreme Court Hands Each Side a Partial Victory
· The Travel Ban Saga Continues in the Supreme Court
· A Portrait of Asian Americans in the Law
· Road Trip: Haskell Free Library & Opera House
Tuesday, July 18, 2017
· From the Bookshelves: The Politics of New Immigrant Destinations: Transatlantic Perspectives Edited by Stefanie Chambers, Diana Evans, Anthony M. Messina, and Abigail Fisher Williamson
· Immigrant Health-Care Workers in the United States
· Iraqi Christians Supported Trump; They Now Face Deportation
· Cuban Migration: A Postrevolution Exodus Ebbs and Flows
· Cyrus Mehta: Supreme Court’s Heightened Standard for Revoking Naturalization Should Apply to All Immigration Benefits
· Guest Blog Post by Professor Rebecca Sharpless: Justice Delayed but Not Denied: Eleventh Circuit on Deliberate Misrepresentation
· Immigrant of the Day: Ballerina Michaela DePrince, Sierra Leone
· Immigration Article of the Day: Understanding Secondary Immigration Enforcement: Immigrant Youth and Family Separation in a Border County by Nina Rabin
Monday, July 17, 2017
· NYT on Undocumented Immigration Attorneys and Immigration Advocacy
· AG Jeff Sessions' Spreading "Alternative Facts" a/k/a Falsehoods About Crime in Sanctuary Cities
· President Trump Intervenes to Ensure that Robotics Team from Afghanistan is Issued Visas, Can Compete in Global Robotics Competition in the US
AILA NEWS UPDATE
Daily Immigration News Clips – July 21, 2017
Aggregated local and national media coverage of major immigration law news stories being discussed throughout the U.S. on July 21, 2017
National
Politico DHS REQUESTS BED MONEY By Ted Heasson
Washington Post Durbin, Graham file Dream Act, hoping to ward off legal challenge to DACA By Maria Sacchetti
Washington Post Democratic state attorneys general urge Trump to keep DACA, say it has boosted economy By Maria Sacchetti
McClatchy Here is the draft of a new 'DREAM Act' that Trump is already rejecting By Franco Ordonez
CBS Graham tells Republicans "moment of reckoning" is coming on Dream Act By Kathryn Watson
Huffington Post Trump's Sympathy For Dreamers Doesn't Extend To Actual Legislation To Help Them By Elise Foley
Huffington Post Seventy-Five Percent of Trump Voters Want Legal Status for Dreamers By Matthew La Corte
Tampa Bay Times A new 'Dream Act' lacks a prominent backer: Marco Rubio By Alex Leary
Greenville Online Lindsey Graham seeks to protect DREAMers By Nathaniel Cary
Law360 Immigration Court Case Backlog Hits Record 610,000 By Nicole Narea
NPR Teen Girls In Quinceañera Dresses Protest Texas Immigration Law By Vanessa Romo
Houston Chronicle National Latino group pulls convention from Texas over SB4 By Paul Cobler
KSAT Uncertain future awaits bill trying to repeal SB4 By Jessie Degollado
Associated Press Judge refuses to reinstate Trump sanctuary cities order
Reuters Judge Refuses to Remove Block on Trump Sanctuary City Order By Dan Levine
Politico Judge declines to remove block on Trump sanctuary cities order By Cristiano Lima
SF Gate Judge refuses to dismiss SF, Santa Clara Co. sanctuary cities case By Bob Egelko
Slate How Trump's Travel Ban Hobbled a Libyan High School Robotics Team By Aaron Mak
Newsday Mixed ruling keeps Trump travel ban on its legal trek By Dan Janison
The Hill Bachmann: Muslim immigrants trying to undermine Western civilization By Jacqueline Thomsen
New York Times A Broader Sweep By Jennifer Medina and Miriam Jordan
New Yorker A Deportation at M.I.T., and New Risks for the Undocumented By Steve Coll
The Hill Johnson: Illegal immigration down because Trump rhetoric 'scared off' women, children By Rebecca Savransky
New Haven Register Connecticut woman who was to be deported takes refuge in New Haven church By Mary O'Leary
WCVB Supporters rally to save MIT janitor from deportation By Todd Kazakiewich
Houston Public Media A Houston Family's Struggle After Deportation By Allison Lee
Associated Press Attorney general has no plans to resign despite Trump rebuke By Julie Pace and Jonathan Lemire
Associated Press DHS chief says arresting parents may quell human trafficking By Michael Balsamo
Associated Press Australia Disappointed by Delay in US Refugee Resettlement
New York Times In a Cruel Summer for the G.O.P., 'Things Are Starting to Feel Incoherent' By Jennifer Steinhauer
The Hill Republicans rally around Sessions after Trump criticism By Katie Bo Williams and Scott Wong
The Hill Trump has confidence in Sessions, White House says By Niall Stanage
The Hill Graham and Kushner met to discuss immigration differences: report By Rafael Bernal
The Hill House votes to reauthorize Department of Homeland Security By Cristina Marcos
New York Times (Opinion) Trump, Six Months in By David Leonhardt
New York Times (Op-Ed) Traveling to America While Muslim By Ismail Einashi
Washington Post (Opinion) 6 months of President Trump, in 7 issues By Amber Phillips
Washington Post (Opinion) In his quest to demonize immigrants, Fox News's Tucker Carlson misses a good story By Erik Wemple
Washington Post (Opinion) Kobach is a 'useful idiot' for Russia By Jennifer Rubin
Washington Post (Op-Ed) Deporting people made Central America's gangs. More deportation won't help. By Daniel Denvir
Washington Post (Opinion) Right and left unite against Jeff Sessions's latest outrage By Jennifer Rubin
Washington Post (Opinion) Donald Trump's lost opportunity By Fareed Zakaria
The Hill (Op-Ed) Congress needs to provide Dreamers with permanent protection By Matthew La Corte and Melanie Huettman
The Hill (Op-Ed) Mounting nationwide immigration enforcement costs By Marc Schindler and Jeremy Kittredge
The Hill (Op-Ed) The America I love is far better united than it is divided By Shermichael Singleton
The Hill (Op-Ed) Trump's attack on one class of immigrants won't make America great By Pablo Alvarado and Martha Arevalo
The Hill (Op-Ed) Trump's chaos, mixed messages more dangerous than his policies By Marco Lopez
Local
Cleveland Jewish News Leopold advocates for immigration reform By Alyssa Schmitt
Associated Press (Missouri) Missouri businesses raided for alleged human trafficking
Politico (New York) Quietly, Cuomo huddles with Senate Democrats By Jimmy Vielkind
ABC 7 Alliance San Diego Launches Campaign to Help DACA, Undocumented Immigrants By Llarisa Abreu
KRWG (Op-Ed) Dream Act of 2017 lives up to our core American values By Lily Eskelsen García
KRWG (Op-Ed) Trump Administration Promises More Terrorizing Immigration Raids
Austin American Statesman (Op-Ed) Paxton should consider the harm of ending DACA's success By Angelica Rodriguez
Daily Immigration News Clips – July 20, 2017
Aggregated local and national media coverage of major immigration law news stories being discussed throughout the U.S. on July 20, 2017
National
McClatchy Trump won't support new plan to save 'Dreamers' from deportation, aide says By Franco Ordonez
The Hill Graham, Durbin revive bill to help 'Dreamers' By Rafael Bernal
Law 360 Sens. Graham, Durbin To Lead Bipartisan Dream Act Revival By Nicole Narea