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
CA11 Upholds Asylum Denial to Salvadoran Who Received Gang Threats, over Dissent
In an unpublished decision, the court rejected the petitioner’s claim that the Atlanta Immigration Court (AIC) had denied her equal protection rights. The dissent noted that the petitioner’s statistics regarding the AIC merited further inquiry by the BIA. (Diaz-Rivas v. Att’y Gen., 4/18/19)
Americans Abroad Among Those Being Left in the Lurch by the Trump Administration
AILA member Jeremy Weber shares insights into the vital role USCIS International Operations serve and highlights how closure of those offices will negatively impact all too many Americans, their families, American businesses, and refugees.
AILA: AG Aims to Detain Asylum Seekers, Intruding Further on Immigration Court Independence
In response to the AG’s decision in Matter of M-S-, AILA Treasurer Jeremy McKinney stated, “This decision further expands mandatory and prolonged detention of people who are neither dangerous nor flight risks, practices which are constitutionally suspect and a waste of taxpayer money.”
Attorney General Barr Strips Bond Eligibility From Asylum Seekers: Matter Of M-S- Analysis And Q&A
AILA, NIJC, Human Rights First, and Women’s Refugee Commission provide analysis and Q&A on Matter of M-S-.
AILA Quicktake #263: Attorney General Issues a Decision in Matter of M-S-
AILA’s Director of Government Relations Greg Chen discusses Matter of M-S-.
AG Finds Individual Who Is Transferred from Expedited Removal to Full Removal Is Ineligible for Release on Bond
The Attorney General found that if an individual is transferred from expedited removal to full removal proceedings after establishing credible fear, he is ineligible for bond and must be detained, unless he is granted parole. Matter of M-S-, 27 I&N Dec. 509 (A.G. 2019)
S. 1103: Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy Act
On 4/10/19, Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR), introduced S. 1103 to establish a skill-based immigration points system, to focus family-sponsored immigration on spouses and minor children, eliminate the Diversity Visa Program, and limit the number of asylum seekers admitted to the United States.
The Chess Prodigy and Asylum Policy
AILA member and Senior Legal Editor Rizwan Hassan writes about the recent New York State Scholastic Chess child champion Tanitoluwa Adewumi as an example of the asylum seekers and refugees who have made America great over generations, urging that we take action and call for good immigration policy.
AILA Quicktake #262: Asylum and the Southern Border — An Update
Reports of increasing numbers of asylum seekers at the southern border have resulted in the administration charging that the federal government cannot manage the arrivals without more resources. AILA’s Greg Chen explains why what we really need is a better management of the available resources.
CA6 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Guatemalan Citizen Who Was Kidnapped by Gang at Seven Years Old
The court found that substantial evidence supported the BIA’s conclusion that petitioner, who was kidnapped, beaten, and raped by a gang at age seven, had failed to show that the Guatemalan government was unable or unwilling to control her persecutors and protect her. (K.H. v. Barr, 4/8/19)
Complaint Highlights Due Process Violations in El Paso Immigration Court and Calls for Immediate Oversight
A complaint filed with DOJ’s EOIR, OIG, and OPR by the American Immigration Council and AILA highlights systemic due process violations that are undermining justice for detained immigrants called before judges at the El Paso Service Processing Center immigration court.
American Immigration Council and AILA File Complaint to Bring Injustice in El Paso Immigration Court to Light
The American Immigration Council and AILA filed an oversight complaint demanding investigation and highlighting systemic due process violations that are undermining justice for detained immigrants called before judges at the El Paso Service Processing Center immigration court.
CA5 Upholds Asylum Denial to Indian Who Suffered Past Persecution on Account of His Religion and Political Opinion
The court found that substantial evidence supported the BIA’s determination that DHS had rebutted the presumption of future persecution by showing a change in circumstances, where DHS had cross-examined the petitioner but had not presented any evidence of its own. (Singh v. Barr, 4/3/19)
DHS Issues Statement on Situation at Southern Border
DHS Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen issued a statement about the situation at the U.S. southern border and DHS’s response. Nielsen announced that effective immediately, she is redirecting additional DHS personnel and resources to assist with the agency’s response at the border.
Secretary Nielsen Orders Additional CBP Personnel to Southern Border and Expansion of Migrant Protection Protocols
DHS Secretary Nielsen ordered CBP increase its temporary reassignment of personnel and resources to address the influx of migrants at the southern border. She also directed CBP to expand the Migrant Protection Protocols and return hundreds of additional migrants per day to Mexico.
EOIR Released Percentage of DHS-Detained Cases Completed Within Six Months for Second Quarter of FY2019
EOIR released statistics on the percentage of DHS-detained cases completed within six months. As of 3/31/19, 92 percent of initial case completions took less than six months.
EOIR Released Statistics on Decision Outcomes for Second Quarter of FY2019
EOIR released statistics on outcomes of initial case decisions for the second quarter of FY2019 (through 3/31/19). Statistics cover removal, deportation, and exclusion cases; asylum-only and withholding-only cases; and credible fear reviews, reasonable fear reviews, and claimed status reviews.
CA8 Upholds Asylum Denial to Guatemalan Woman Who Was Repeatedly Abused by Domestic Partner
The court upheld the BIA’s denial of asylum, finding that a reasonable adjudicator would not be compelled to find that the Guatemalan government was and would be unwilling or unable to protect the petitioner against her daughter’s abusive father. (Juarez-Coronado v. Barr, 3/29/19)
District Court Says Spouse of Refugee May Adjust to LPR Status Even If Marital Status Changes After Filing of the LPR Application
The court held that the plaintiff, a derivative spouse of a refugee, qualified for lawful permanent resident (LPR) status because he was married to his spouse at the time of filing, even though he was no longer married at the time of adjudication. (Dorbor v. United States, et al., 3/29/19)
CBP Announces Temporary Re-assignment of CBP Officers to Border Patrol Sectors
CBP announced that it is temporarily re-assigning up to 750 CBP officers to the San Diego, Tucson, El Paso, and Laredo Field Offices. CBP officers will support Sectors with care and custody responsibilities, including hospital watch and transportation.
Despite the #MeToo Movement, Roll-Backs in Protection Endanger Immigrant Women: It is Time for #ImmigrantWomenToo
In this blog post, Morgan Weibel shares the importance of humanitarian protections for immigrant victims of sexual assault and violence, how they are being undermined, and the need to unite behind the move to recognize and address the plight of #ImmigrantWomenToo.
CA8 Says “Salvadoran Female Heads of Households” Is Not a Cognizable Particular Social Group
The court held that the BIA did not err in ruling that petitioner had failed to prove past persecution on account of her membership in the social group of “Salvadoran female heads of household,” finding that the group lacked social distinction and particularity. (De Guevara v. Barr, 3/21/19)
EOIR Responds to AILA’s FOIA Request Regarding Matter of A-B-
EOIR provided various documents in its March 21, 2019, response to AILA’s FOIA request concerning Matter of A-B-.
CA9 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Mexican Police Officer Who Received Death Threats from Hitmen
The court held that the evidence did not compel the conclusion that the petitioner, a Mexican police officer who had received two death threats from hitmen of the Sinaloa drug cartel, had suffered past harm rising to the level of persecution. (Duran-Rodriguez v. Barr, 3/20/19)
CA4 Reverses Denial of CAT Relief to Salvadoran Who Received Death Threats from Gang
The court granted the petition for review, holding that the BIA had entirely failed to address the petitioner’s testimony that Salvadoran officials had turned a “blind eye” to death threats made by members of the 18th Street gang to petitioner and her son. (Cabrera Vasquez v. Barr, 3/20/19)