By Linus Chan Bearing witness to sorrow, pain and injustice has always been part of the package deal of being an immigration attorney. Immigration law is diverse, rich and an example of how to define what our country's values are. Deciding who can be our neighbors, co-workers, teachers, and family often requires us to articulate our vision of the United States and how it is to remain a shining light on a hill. I represent non-citizens detained by immigration officials and who face removal from our country and exile from their homes and family. Many of my clients are those people [...]
Making the invisible visible inside Canada’s immigration detention regime
By Carrie Dawson In December 2013, Lucia Vega Jimenez, an undocumented Mexican national who worked as a chambermaid in Vancouver, was caught paying less than the full fare for a train ticket. The transit police turned her over to Canadian Border Services Agency (CBSA), the government body responsible for border security, who took her into custody. The day before she was scheduled to be deported, Jimenez hanged herself from a shower rod in the immigration detention center. She died one week later. In a newspaper interview, Yasmin Trejo, a friend of Jimenez’s, said, “Lucia ended up being [...]
The Demonization of “Criminal Aliens”
By Beth Caldwell In the context of the current presidential debate, the hate that invoking the term “criminal alien” evokes for a large segment of the U.S. population is tangible. In his immigration speech in Arizona, Donald Trump repeated the term “criminal alien” over and over again. Mike Pence followed suit in the October 4 vice presidential debate, using the term three times in a relatively brief response to a question about immigration policy. But the Trump campaign is not alone in invoking the “criminal alien” term. President Obama too has framed his immigration policies using this [...]
Utah v. Strieff and the Exclusionary Rule’s Future in Immigration Court – Part II
By Katie Tinto The availability of the exclusionary rule as a remedy for unconstitutional police conduct was recently further restricted by the Supreme Court in Utah v. Strieff, ___ S. Ct. ___, No. 14-1373 (June 20, 2016). In a prior blog post, I warned of the potential of Strieff to seriously limit the availability of the suppression remedy in immigration court. Although the exclusionary rule in immigration court may not be directly impacted, the decision will likely have a detrimental effect on our immigrant communities and the manner in which they are policed. To quickly summarize the [...]
Reviewing Mathis v. United States
By Kelley Keefer and Linus Chan Justice Alito’s woeful tale of a misguided European driver in his dissenting opinion of Mathis v. United States is presented as a criticism to the Supreme Court’s categorical approach jurisprudence. No. 15-6092, slip op. dissent at 1 (J. Alito dissenting) (U.S. Sup. Ct., June 23, 2016). And while one (and the majority) may disagree as to whether Taylor v. United States, 495 U.S. 575 (1990), really was a wrong turn, the 26 years since the publication of Taylor has nonetheless proven to be an interesting journey. Mathis provides the latest attempt by the [...]
GAO Report Reveals Troubling Inconsistencies and Issues Regarding Immigration Detention Medical Care
By: Thamys Gaertner BACKGROUND The United States Government Office Accountability Office (GAO) issued a report in February 2016 analyzing the disturbing costs and problems of the current on-site and off-site medical care in immigration detention facilities across the United States. U.S. Gov’t Accountability Office, GAO-16-231, Immigration Detention: Additional Actions Needed to Strengthen Management and Oversight of Detainee Medical Care (2016). During 2015, ICE held about 28,000 detainees per day in over 165 facilities. Id. at 6. In line with what has previously been reported on [...]
Following Trend, Fifth Circuit Holds Definition of Crime of Violence Unconstitutionally Vague
By Sarah Flinn Agreeing with both the Seventh and Ninth Circuits, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit concluded that the definition of crime of violence in 18 U.S.C. § 16(b) is unconstitutionally vague. United States v. Gonzalez-Longoria, No. 15-40041, 2016 WL 537612, at *1 (5th Cir. February 10, 2016). Mr. Gonzalez-Longoria was convicted and sentenced for being illegally present in the United States in violation of Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) § 276. Id. During sentencing, the trial court determined that Mr. Gonzalez-Longoria’s prior Texas felony conviction was an [...]
BIA: CHILD ENDANGERMENT OFFENSE IS CHILD ABUSE UNDER § 237(a)(2)(E)(i)
By: Thamys Gaertner In a decision issued on February 9, 2016, the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) concluded that a crime of endangering the welfare of a child is categorically a removable offense under § 237(a)(2)(E)(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act, 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(2)(E)(i) (2012). Henry Javier Mendoza Osorio is a native of Ecuador and a United States lawful permanent resident. Matter of Mendoza Osorio, 26 I&N Dec. 703 (BIA 2016). Mr. Mendoza Osorio was convicted of endangering the welfare of a child under § 260.10(1) of the New York Penal Law. Id. Consequently, DHS [...]
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