Featured Issue: U.S. Immigration Courts under Trump 2.0
The U.S. immigration court system plays a critical role in upholding due process and ensuring fair hearings for individuals facing deportation. However, since January 20, 2025, the Department of Justice (DOJ) has implemented significant changes that challenge the structural integrity of these courts. This page aims to provide up-to-date information on the policy and legal shifts affecting the U.S. immigration court system.
Latest Updates
Updates from EOIR
Browse the Featured Issue: U.S. Immigration Courts under Trump 2.0 collection
CA8 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Honduran Woman Whose Father and Brother Were Kidnapped in 2008
The court upheld the BIA’s and IJ’s denial of asylum to the petitioner, whose father and brother had been kidnapped in Honduras in 2008, finding that the petitioner fell short of establishing past persecution or a well-founded fear of future persecution. (Mejia-Ramos v. Barr, 8/15/19)
CA9 Dismisses Government’s Appeal of June 2017 District Court Order Relating to Enforcement of Flores Settlement Agreement
The court found that the district court’s June 27, 2017, order did not modify the Agreement’s requirement that minors be held in “safe and sanitary” conditions that comport with the “special concern for the particular vulnerability of minors.” (Flores, et al. v. Barr, et al., 8/15/19)
CA9 Defers to BIA’s Ruling That Arizona Felony Conviction for Solicitation to Possess Marijuana for Sale Is a CIMT
The court held that the petitioner was inadmissible under INA §101(a)(13)(C)(v) and INA §212(a)(2)(A)(i)(I), because her felony conviction for solicitation to possess marijuana for sale in Arizona was a crime involving moral turpitude (CIMT). (Gonzalez-Romo v. Barr, 8/14/19)
CA8 Finds AAO Did Not Err in Denying Petitioner’s Appeal for Failure to Comply with Agency Deadline
The court held that petitioner, who filed an application for Temporary Resident Status as a Special Agricultural Worker (SAW) in 1988, could not meet his burden to equitably toll the 30-day time limit for his appeal to the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO). (Capiz-Fabian v. Barr, 8/14/19)
EOIR to Open Immigration Court in Sacramento, CA
EOIR announced it will be opening an immigration court in Sacramento, California, on September 3, 2019. Notice includes the court’s location, contact information, and hours of operation.
TRAC Report Shows ICE Secure Communities Removals Declining
A TRAC report shows that the number of Secure Communities deportations has been trending downward during the past year, falling to 6,152 in 4/19, compared to 7,456 in 5/18. The number of removals by community are reflective of individual communities’ policies regarding cooperation with ICE.
CA1 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Guatemalan Petitioner Who Claimed He Was Targeted by Barrio 18 Gang Members
The court held that the BIA did not err in concluding that the petitioner, whose proposed particular social group was “males who have had romantic involvement with the partners of drug dealers,” was ineligible for asylum. (Ramírez-Pérez v. Barr, 8/13/19)
BIA Reverses Denial of Motion to Change Venue from Dallas to New York
Unpublished BIA decision grants interlocutory appeal and reverses denial of motion to change venue given that respondent’s family and pro bono attorney were located in New York. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Vasquez-Molina, 8/13/19)
CA3 Finds BIA Misapplied Modified Categorical Approach to Petitioner’s Pennsylvania Conviction
The court held that the BIA incorrectly applied the modified categorical approach in determining that the Pennsylvania state crime of which petitioner was convicted constituted either an aggravated felony or a conviction relating to a controlled substance. (Hillocks v. Att’y Gen., 8/12/19)
CA3 Says “Particularly Serious Crime” Is Not Limited to Aggravated Felonies in Asylum or Withholding of Removal Context
The court held that, in the asylum and withholding of removal context, aggravated felonies are a subset of particularly serious crimes, and found that petitioner’s Delaware second-degree unlawful imprisonment conviction was a particularly serious crime. (Bastardo-Vale v. Att’y Gen., 8/12/19)
FAQs After Federal Court Requires Immigration Courts to Continue to Provide Bond Hearings, Despite Matter of M-S-
The American Immigration Council, and its partners, the Northwest Immigrant Rights Project and the ACLU, issued FAQs after a district court judge issued a decision modifying an existing preliminary injunction in Padilla v. U.S., requiring immigration courts to provide bond hearings.
AILA: Massive Raid Adds to Migrant Fears, Endangers Due Process
On August 7, 2019, the administration executed a massive single-state worksite enforcement raid; AILA Executive Director Ben Johnson noted, “This raid was launched with no regard for the fundamental principles of due process that are the foundation of the American justice system.”
DOJ Announces Certain Previously Detained Noncitizens with Small Children Were Released
The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Mississippi announced that following ICE's enforcement action on 8/7/19 in Mississippi, certain noncitizens with small children were released on humanitarian grounds.
BIA Holds Florida Statute Not Sexual Abuse of a Minor or a Crime of Child Abuse
Unpublished BIA decision holds that traveling to seduce/solicit/entice a child to commit a sex act under Fla. Stat. 847.0135(4)(a) is not sexual abuse of a minor or a crime of child abuse. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Mesidor, 8/8/19)
BIA Reverses Denial of Continuance Due to Withdrawal of Prior Attorney
Unpublished BIA decision holds IJ should have continued proceedings where respondent was not served with his prior attorney’s motion to withdraw or the decision granting the motion nine days prior to the individual hearing. Special thanks to IRAC. (Matter of Cisse, 8/7/19)
Practice Alert: U Visas — Updated Guide for Law Enforcement Certifiers and New Directive on Stay Requests
This practice alert provides information on the updated U visa guide for law enforcement certifiers and on the new ICE directive regarding requests for stays of removal for U visa petitioners.
El Paso Immigration Collaborative (EPIC) Seeks to Change the Asylum Landscape for Detained Immigrants
The Immigration Justice Campaign, along with local and national partners, launched the El Paso Immigration Collaborative (EPIC). EPIC seeks to increase legal representation for detained immigrants around El Paso and promote oversight of the immigration courts and detention centers in the region.
CA6 Upholds Denial of Asylum to Former Guatemalan Taxi Driver Who Was Threatened by Gangs
The court concluded that the BIA did not err in finding that the petitioner, a taxi driver who lived in a poppy-producing region of Guatemala and who had been threatened by gang members, had failed to articulate a particular social group. (Gonzalez-De Leon v. Barr, 8/5/19)
CA11 Remands Asylum Claims of Pakistani Petitioner Who Practices Ahmadiyya Islam
The court granted the petition for review of the BIA’s denial of asylum to the Pakistani petitioner, a practitioner of Ahmadiyya Islam, finding that the BIA did not afford the case reasoned consideration and ignored highly relevant evidence of past persecution. (Ali v. Att’y Gen., 8/5/19)
AILA and Partners Submit Amicus Brief on Judicial Alteration of a Criminal Conviction or Sentence
AILA and partners submitted an amicus brief arguing that the attorney general's invitation is overbroad and that any new rule must be limited to the particularities of Georgia's sentencing law. Matter of Thomas and Matter of Thompson, 27 I&N Dec. 556 (A.G. 2019)
ICE FAQs on Revised Guidance on Stay of Removal Request Reviews for U Visa Petitioners
ICE provides FAQs on ICE Directive 11005.2, which revises prior guidance from 2009 on stay of removal request reviews for U visa petitioners to allow ICE to use its discretion when determining whether to grant a stay of removal request based on the totality of circumstances.
CA9 Says Petitioner’s Oregon Conviction for Strangulation Is Categorically a Crime of Violence
The court held that the petitioner’s conviction in Oregon for strangulation was categorically a crime of violence aggravated felony that rendered him removable and ineligible for asylum. (Flores-Vega v. Barr, 8/2/19)
CA8 Says Iowa Forgery Conviction Is an Aggravated Felony
The court held that the BIA did not err in concluding that the petitioner’s Iowa forgery conviction constituted an aggravated felony, and found that DHS did not violate the petitioner’s due process rights. (Salazar v. Barr, 8/1/19)
CA3 Remands Where Petitioners Contend Evidence Obtained from Traffic Stop Violated Their Fourth Amendment Rights
The court vacated the order denying petitioners’ motion for suppression of evidence that was obtained as a result of a traffic stop by a Pennsylvania state trooper, holding that the petitioners had identified a possible egregious Fourth Amendment violation. (Yoc-Us v. Att’y Gen., 7/31/19)
CA6 Says It Lacks Jurisdiction to Review Untimely Challenge to Underlying Removal Order
The court held that it lacked jurisdiction to review the petitioner’s assertion that the immigration court did not have jurisdiction to issue the underlying removal order, finding that this challenge was time-barred pursuant to INA §242(b)(1). (Moreno-Martinez v. Barr, 7/31/19)