Featured Issue: Asylum Under Trump 2.0
On the first day of his second term, President Trump suspended all entries at the U.S. Southern Border for asylum seekers. Since then, the Administration has implemented sweeping restrictions that shut America’s doors to people fleeing persecution. These policies violate federal law, erode constitutionally protected due process, exacerbate the asylum backlog, and give those seeking safety an increasingly narrow path to protection.
Left unchecked by Congress, these policies will have dire consequences for both asylum seekers and the integrity of our legal system. Asylum seekers—especially those without access to counsel—are at grave risk of being returned to harm.
It doesn’t have to be this way. The Administration can maintain order at U.S. borders and effectively manage migration without sacrificing fairness and adherence to the law. With more trained asylum officers, a streamlined legal process, legal representation for asylum seekers, and more effective coordination between relevant agencies, the U.S. can establish a safe, orderly, and humane asylum system.
Browse the Featured Issue: Asylum Under Trump 2.0 collection
Senators Urge DHS to Examine Policies that Limit Access to Legal Counsel for Detained Families
On 10/23/15, 19 senators sent DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson a letter urging him to examine ICE’s policies that have barred or limited asylum-seeking mothers and children access to legal representation in Dilley, Texas.
AILA EOIR/OCAHO Liaison Meeting Minutes (10/22/15)
Minutes from the 10/22/15 AILA liaison meeting with EOIR and OCAHO. Topics include use of technology in the courtroom, representation at credible fear reviews, updates on the immigration court backlogs, priority dockets, staffing, communication between ICE and OCAHO, FOIAs, and appeals.
USCIS Invites Stakeholders to Quarterly Asylum Division Meeting
USCIS invites stakeholders to the 12/11/15 quarterly asylum division meeting, to receive updates from the asylum division and to ask questions. Participation in this meeting is in person only, and RSVPs are required. Questions and agenda items are due by 11/9/15, and RSPVs are due by 12/4/15.
No Safe Haven Here: Mental Health Assessment of Women and Children Held in U.S. Immigration Detention
A mental and behavioral health research team traveled to the Dilley Detention Facility and released a report on Central American women and children’s refugee immigrant detention experiences after doing fieldwork from July 22 to July 24, 2015.
Presidential Determination on Refugee Admissions for FY2016
Presidential determination on refugee admissions for FY2016, stating that the admission of up to 85,000 refugees shall be allowed and provides regional ceilings. (80 FR 62433, 10/16/15)
Dilley as I Saw It, Part 2
Stefan Babich recently traveled to Dilley, Texas, to volunteer with the CARA Family Detention Pro Bono Project. In this two-part blog post, he walks readers through his first day of volunteering and the mothers whose stories he heard. Click here to read Part 1. What is it like hearing the life stori
Dilley as I Saw It, Part 1
Stefan Babich recently traveled to Dilley, Texas, to volunteer with the CARA Family Detention Pro Bono Project. In this two-part blog post, he walks readers through his first day of volunteering and the mothers whose stories he heard. To read Part 2, click here. What was it like, walking into Dilley
CA8 Upholds Adverse Credibility Finding of Petitioner from Punjab, India
The court upheld the IJ's adverse credibility determination, finding that it was based on substantial record evidence and supported by specific, cogent reasons, and also upheld the BIA's rejection of the petitioner's ineffective assistance of counsel claim. (Singh v. Lynch, 10/14/15)
CA7 Finds Petitioner Failed to Provide Sufficient Corroborating Evidence
The court held that petitioner did not offer evidence that corroborated the key elements of his claim of persecution, and that he failed to meet his burden of establishing that supplemental evidence could not have been obtained prior to his merits hearing. (Darinchuluun v. Lynch, 10/8/15)
What I Learned in Dilley
I spent a week volunteering as an immigration lawyer at the ICE family detention center in Dilley, Texas. It was a singular experience and I wanted to share some of what I learned. The detention center in Dilley opened after the 2014 “surge“ in immigrants from Central America crossing the U.S.
Immigration Law Advisor, September 2015 (Vol. 9, No. 8)
The September 2015 Immigration Law Advisor, a legal publication from EOIR, includes with an article on administrative notice and the opportunity to respond, as well as summaries of circuit court decisions from August 2015, summaries of recent BIA precedent decisions, and regulatory updates.
Written Testimony from USCIS for Senate Hearing on FY2016 Refugee Admissions
Written testimony from USCIS before the Senate Committee on the Judiciary’s subcommittee on immigration and the national interest for the 10/1/15 hearing on FY2016 refugee admissions.
DOJ OIL October 2015 Litigation Bulletin
The DOJ OIL Immigration Litigation Bulletin for October 2015, with articles on Rodriguez v. Robbins, Lora v. Shanahan, Matter of Chairez, and Matter of Sama, as well as summaries of circuit court decisions for October 2015.
USCIS Statistics on Asylum Filings for Minors for FY2015
USCIS provided FY2015 statistics on minor principal applicants (affirmative asylum applicants under the age of 18 at time of filing) and asylum applicants of any age filed with USCIS under the initial jurisdiction provision of the TVPRA while in removal proceedings.
CBP Releases Memo and Muster on Streamlined Processing of Initial Refugee Arrivals
CBP released a redacted memo and muster clarifying the refined streamlined processing of initial refugee arrivals.
Another Tool in the Fight to End Family Detention
This wasn't the blog post that I planned on writing. I had intended to simply share some information about the release of the ABA Commission on Immigration's report on family detention, and will. But I was interrupted in my writing by the immediacy of what's happening on the ground (OTG) at the fami
AILA Urges Lawmakers to Increase Resettlement of Refugees Worldwide
AILA’s statement submitted to the Senate Judiciary Committee, Immigration and the National Interest Subcommittee for a hearing on 10/1/15 titled “Oversight of the Administration’s FY 2016 Refugee Resettlement Program: Fiscal and Security Implications.”
Coercion and Intimidation of Detained Mothers and Children
A complaint was submitted to the DHS Office for Civil Rights and Civil Liberties and the Office of Inspector General by the CARA Family Detention Pro Bono Project documenting intimidation, misinformation and violations of the right to counsel at the family detention facility in Dilley, Texas.
CARA: Coercion and Intimidation of Detained Mothers and Children Must Stop
The CARA Family Detention Pro Bono Project submitted a complaint to the DHS Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties and the Office of Inspector General documenting intimidation, misinformation and violations of the right to counsel at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas.
Public Complaint Regarding Coercion and Violations of the Right to Counsel at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley
Public complaint submitted by the CARA Project to the DHS Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties and the Office of Inspector General documenting intimidation, misinformation and violations of the right to counsel at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas.
When Our Government Operates in Its Own Flawed Reality, the Most Vulnerable Suffer
On July 24, a federal court in California ruled that the Obama Administration's policy of detaining mothers and children violated the 1997 Flores Agreement. In a 25-page ruling, Judge Dolly Gee noted she found it “astonishing“ that immigration authorities had adopted a policy requiring such an
CA9 Says It Lacks Jurisdiction to Review Challenge to Expedited Removal Proceeding
The court held that, pursuant to the jurisdiction-stripping provisions of INA §2429(a)(2)(A), it lacked jurisdiction to review an IJ’s affirmance of an asylum officer's negative credible fear determination in the petitioner's expedited removal proceedings. (Pena v. Lynch, 9/28/15)
District Court Reverses Denial of I-485 Based on Terrorism Grounds
The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California held that USCIS acted arbitrarily, capriciously, and contrary to the law in denying based on terrorism grounds the adjustment of status application of an applicant who was granted asylum by an IJ. (Islam v. DHS, 9/25/15)
CA9 Says Credibility Determination May Be Based Solely on Background Evidence in Record
The court held that the REAL ID Act permits the BIA and IJ to base their adverse credibility determinations exclusively on background evidence in the record upon considering the totality of the circumstances and all relevant factors. (Singh v. Lynch, 9/21/15)
Obama Administration Again Hands Families Over to Private Prison Company
The CARA Family Detention Pro Bono Project responded to the news that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) had awarded a private prison company the grant to establish a new case management alternative to detention initiative for families.