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
ICE Arrests 75 Foreign Nationals with Criminal Records in VA and DC
ICE press release on the arrests of 75 foreign nationals with criminal records in Virginia and Washington, DC, following two ICE enforcement operations. The release includes information on the removal process for individuals arrested.
CA3 Remands for Clarification or Reconsideration of Hardship in Cancellation Case
The court found that the BIA may have impermissibly applied Matter of Recinas, focusing on the number of qualifying relatives for hardship purposes instead of the hardship to Petitioner’s sole qualifying relative. (Pareja v. U.S. Att’y Gen., 7/29/10)
BIA Reaffirms Areguillin Interpretation of “Admitted” in INA §101(a)(13)(A)
The BIA held that for purposes of establishing adjustment of status eligibility under INA §245(a), an alien seeking to show that he or she has been “admitted” to the U.S., need only prove procedural regularity in his or her entry. Matter of Quilantan, 25 I&N Dec. 285 (BIA 2010)
CA1 Denies Asylum Claim of Former Cambodian Police Officer
The court held that fears resulting solely from past conduct as an honest police officer and potential victimization by corrupt police officers and criminals in the future does not qualify as persecution based on one of the protected grounds. (Ly v. Holder, 7/28/10)
DOJ OIL June 2010 Litigation Bulletin
DOJ Office of Immigration Litigation released its June 2010 Bulletin, which includes an article analyzing the declining percentage of published asylum-related government wins in the Eleventh Circuit, litigation highlights, and summaries of federal court decisions.
CA11 Remands Finding No “Reason to Believe” Petitioner Was a Drug Trafficker
The court held that a vacated conviction that was based on a guilty plea combined with hearsay statements from police reports did not provide enough reason to believe that the petitioner trafficked in a controlled substance. (Garces v. U.S. Att’y Gen., 7/27/10)
CA9 Discusses “Unable or Unwilling” Standard for Nongovernmental Persecution
In a Ghanaian religious persecution case, the BIA erred in its “unable or unwilling” analysis by ignoring evidence favorable to Petitioner, misstating Petitioner’s testimony, and treating police reports made by others as irrelevant. (Afriyie v. Holder, 7/26/10)
HRW and ACLU Report on Detention and Deportation
A report from Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union on “Deportation by Default: Mental Disability, Unfair Hearings and Indefinite Detention in the US Immigration System."
ICE Online Detainee Locator System (ODLS) Brochure
ICE issued a brochure for the public on the Online Detainee Locator System (ODLS). The brochure includes answers to questions on how to use the search, the definition of the term “in custody,” individuals who are not included in the system, and using the information.
ICE Online Detainee Locator System (ODLS) Website
The ICE Online Detainee Locator System is a searchable online database to locate a detainee who is currently in ICE custody, or who was released from ICE custody for any reason within the last 60 days. The system cannot search for records of persons under the age of 18.
ICE Announces Launch of Online Detainee Locator System
ICE announced the launch of the Online Detainee Locator System (ODLS), a public, Internet-based tool designed to assist family members, attorneys and other interested parties in locating detainees in ICE custody. The ODLS website address is http://www.ice.gov/locator.
CA1 Finds Jurisdiction to Review BIA Denial of Equitable Tolling
The court found jurisdiction to review the BIA’s decision to deny equitable tolling of the time and number limitations on the motion to reopen, but not to review the BIA’s refusal to sua sponte reopen. (Neves v. Holder, 7/21/10)
ICE Detainee Passes Away at Orleans Parish Prison
ICE reported that a 28-year-old El Salvadoran national being held in ICE custody was pronounced dead on 7/18/10 at Orleans Parish Prison after an apparent suicide. DHS' Office of the Inspector General is conducting a review of the circumstances surrounding his death.
CA9 Interprets “Final Administrative Order” for Motions to Reopen
The denial of a motion to reconsider does not qualify as a “final administrative order of removal” for purposes of the 90-day time limitation on filing motions to reopen under INA §240(c)(7)(C)(i). (Vega v. Holder, 7/19/10)
BIA Finds Virginia Assault and Battery Is Not Categorically a Crime of Domestic Violence
The BIA remanded, holding that a misdemeanor offense of assault and battery of a family member in violation of the VA Code Annotated is not categorically a crime of domestic violence within the meaning of INA § 237(a)(2)(E). Matter of Velasquez, 25 I&N Dec. 278 (BIA 2010)
CA5 Finds BIA Overstated Scope of Stipulation in Prior §212(c) Proceeding
The court vacated the BIA’s decision and remanded, finding that the BIA’s conclusion that Petitioner had stipulated that a 2001 conviction would be excluded from coverage under a previously granted §212(c) waiver was incorrect. (Enriquez-Gutierrez v. Holder, 7/16/10)
USCIS News Release & Q&As on 10,000 U Visas Approved in FY 2010
This USCIS news release and list of answers to questions on U Visas addresses the approval of 10,000 U visas in FY 2010, new petitions, conditional approval, removal proceedings and final orders of removal, issuance of U Visas for FY 2011 and the annual cap.
ICE 30-Day Extension of Comment Request on Form I-333
ICE 30-day extension of the information collection on Form I-333, Obligor Change of Address. Written comments are due 9/16/10. (75 FR 41213, 07/15/10) (75 FR 24720, 5/5/10)
CA7 Remands Chinese Asylum Case on “One-Child” Policy
The court remanded the asylum case of a petitioner opposed to China’s “one-child” policy, finding that the BIA overlooked the critical facts, and then it unconvincingly denied having overlooked them. (Li v. Holder, 7/15/10)
CA7 Weighs in on 8 CFR §1003.2(d) “Departure Bar”
The court held that 8 CFR §1003.2(d) does not bar BIA jurisdiction over motions to reopen/reconsider where the alien departed the U.S. under an order of removal because an agency may not contract its own jurisdiction by regulation. (Marin-Rodriguez v. Holder, 7/14/10)
CA9 Finds California Penal Code §273.5(a) is a Domestic Violence Crime
A conviction for “corporal injury to a spouse/cohabitant” in violation of California Penal Code §273.5(a) is categorically a crime of domestic violence under INA §237(a)(2)(E)(i). (Banuelos-Ayon v. Holder, 7/14/10)
CA9 Remands Motion Claiming Lack of Notice of BIA Decision
The BIA abused its discretion by denying Petitioner’s motion to reissue its underlying decision, without considering the weight of Petitioner’s declaration to rebut the presumption of notice and accompanying change of address. (Hernandez-Velasquez v. Holder, 7/14/10)
EOIR Memo on FY2010 Case Completion Goals
A 7/14/10 memo from Brian M. O’Leary, Chief Immigration Judge, announcing EOIR’s FY2010 Case Completion Goals, including goals for detained cases, bond hearings, expedited asylum cases, credible fear reviews, Institutional Hearing Program, and more. Courtesy of Jesse Maanao.
CA11 Requires Fact-Specific Inquiry to Rebut Past Persecution in Withholding Claim
Whether a fundamental change has occurred to rebut past persecution for withholding of removal is a fact-specific inquiry, tailored to the petitioner’s claim. It is insufficient to rely on information about general country changes. (Imelda v. U.S. Att’y Gen., 7/12/10)
CA7 Remands Asylum Claim of Falun Gong Practitioner
The court remanded the asylum case of a Falun Gong practitioner, finding that the evidence established that the petitioner was subject to a well-founded fear of persecution on return to China. (Qiu v. Holder, 7/12/10)