Removal | US Immigration News & Commentary

February 18, 2009

ICE clearly racial profiling to fill quotas.

Filed under: Immigration, Politics — Tags: Immigration, immigration policy, immigration reform, not change you can believe in, obama, racial profiling, removal, USDHS, USICE — justin @ 2:06 pm

A story in the Washington Post exposes the Immigration and Customs Enforcement National Fugitive Operations Program – a program that received over $600 million from congress – as a federally funded racial profiling operation.

The program which, as it is named, is intended to be used to round up fugitives, is an abject failure by that measure. In 2007 nearly 1/2 of the people arrested were not fugitives from the law. The USICE says that number is going down but since they specifically allow non-fugitive arrests to be counted towards the quota that’s nonsense. In fact, it should be zero if they are only going after specific fugitives not stopping minorities at random. Clearly the USICE is simply going up to brown people and asking for their papers – and the video footage in the story supports exactly that conclusion.

In fact, according to the Post, some employees say that they were specifically directed to arrest non-fugitives to boost their arrest numbers. The USCIS and USDHS have declined to actually investigate the claims. That makes sense since it’s official policy.

The video evidence makes it clear the USICE officers were simply stopping men of Hispanic descent without reasonable cause or suspicion. The men detained included, Ernest Guillen, who was merely stopping for a cup of coffee on his way to be with his US citizen son who was receiving chemotherapy at John’s Hopkins and another man who was detained for 18 days even though he was in the United States legally.

The questions for the Obama administration are: 1) are you going to maintain a policy of racial profiling? 2) If you do believe racial profiling to be effective and are going to continue it will you expand it to include other agencies not related to immigration?

Or perhaps it’d be a better idea to use that muscle of yours to get comprehensive immigration reform passed.

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February 10, 2009

Immigrant Detention as a Business Model

Filed under: Immigration, Politics — Tags: detention, Immigration, PIC, removal — justin @ 9:13 am

It probably comes as little shock to anyone paying attention that the prison system in the US is big business.

It’s quite profitable and growing every day. It even has it’s own lobbyists.

It’s not just US citizens who are being used as cash cows, immigrants are being sucked into this business as well.

According to a recent article in the Boston Globe, jails all over the nation -including smaller facilities – are taking advantage of the shortage of space and the federal government’s willingness to pay by the body and are raking in millions in profits.

There are many ways that an immigrant can find their way into a detention facility. One common way it works is that when an immigrant fighting his case is either unable to pay bond is subject to mandatory detention (or who the DHS claims is subject to mandatory detention) he may sit in jail for months or even years while pursuing a remedy with the assistance of their immigration attorney, perhaps all the way through the appellate stages.

Many times these immigrants are being removed for non-violent offenses such as minor, personal, drug possession and have no other record. However, Congress has mandated that they be detained for the duration of their proceedings – even if they aren’t dangerous. This needlessly leads to job loss and family disruption as many of these immigrants have been here for decades, have relief available, and will ultimately not be deported.

For example, an immigrant who was convicted of possession of a controlled substance other than a small amount of marijuana may be eligible for relief known as “cancellation of removal” but is also subject to mandatory detention.

This means the have to stay in jail the entire time they’re fighting their case. A case that takes 6 months earns the jail on average $16,000.00 dollars. If the immigrant is denied at the immigration court level and chooses to appeal the profit for the jail increases greatly. Oddly many cases which should be approved are denied at the immigration court level and the Board of Immigration Appeals – both administrative agencies of the executive branch rather than independent tribunals.

There appears to be little incentive to let these folks go even if they’re not dangerous.

In this business model everyone wins – except the families of course.

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February 1, 2009

Cancellation of Removal for Lawful Permanent Residents

Filed under: Immigration — Tags: cancellation of removal, deportation, removal — justin @ 9:58 pm

Cancellation of Removal for Permanent Residents

Permanent residents are foreign nationals who have been granted permission to stay in the U.S. by the U.S. government for the rest of their lives. However, since they are not citizens and since the U.S. constitution gives Congress the power over immigration there are many ways for a permanent resident to lose their status.

One of the most common ways is to commit or be convicted of some sort of criminal offense. After the permanent resident serves his or her time the U.S. government may seek to deport or, as it’s called now, remove that individual.

In the past there were a variety of ways to overcome deportation proceedings. However, absent a claim at asylum or something similar most permanent residents are only left with seeking “Cancellation of Removal”.

At its most basic a request for Cancellation of Removal is simply a plea not to be deported. However, as is always the case, Congress created a few hoops that have to be jumped through before the permanent resident is eligible.

First, the individual must have been a permanent resident for 5 years before apply for Cancellation. Next, the individual must be able to show continuous residency in the U.S. for 7 years after being admitted in any legal status. The road block Congress put up here is that the 7 years presence will stop accruing when the resident commits an act that renders him or her removable.

So, if a person is a resident for 6.5 years and is arrested for possession of a controlled substance they are not eligible for cancellation of removal even if the U.S. government does not try to remove them until after the 7 years of presence has accrued. Also, the resident cannot have been convicted of an aggravated felony.

The judge will balance hardships against the offense or offenses and past history of the resident and determine if cancellation is warranted as a matter of discretion.
Some factors in favor of cancellation are:

1. Strong family ties in U.S.
2. A long residency in the U.S.
3. Evidence of hardship to family and self if deported
4. Served in Armed Forces
5. Solid history of employment
6. Property owner or individual with ties to business
7. Evidence of service to the community
8. Proof of rehabilitation
9. Evidence of good character

The request is filed using an EOIR-42A form with a fee before the individual hearing on the case. Should the request be granted the case against the resident will be terminated and they will be able to continue living their lives. However, if they are placed in removal again it is unlikely that they will be able to seek Cancellation of Removal again.

Justin G. Randolph, Esq. is a Chicago Deportation Lawyer assisting in deportation defense and other immigration matters.

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