Immigration Courts
How Can a Three Year Old Represent Himself in Court?
Each week, in immigration courts across the United States, hundreds of children, some as young as just a few months old, come before immigration judges and are called upon to defend themselves against deportation. Among them is Arturo,* a three year old who arrived at the United States border… Read More
New Evidence Confirms Immigrant Children Show Up in Immigration Court
As many of the unaccompanied minors who crossed the U.S-Mexico border earlier this summer navigate the immigration court system, recent government numbers confirm that the vast majority are showing up for their immigration hearings. Data released by the U.S. Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) shows that between July… Read More
Majority of Individuals Released from Immigration Custody Do Appear in Court
Media outlets reported last week that according to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), about 70 percent of migrant families encountered at the border since May and released “haven’t reported” to an immigration office as instructed. ICE has released little other information about this data point. Several media outlets published… Read More
Municipalities Help Advance Access to Counsel for Immigrants
Historically, “immigrants facing deportation are not provided an attorney if they cannot afford one.” But across the country, municipalities are taking steps to improve access to counsel for those who otherwise would be forced to proceed in immigration court alone. Cities are establishing programs to provide free legal… Read More
Children in Jail: What It’s Like for Immigrants Held at Artesia Center
By Megan Jordi, legal director at the New Mexico Immigrant Law Center. The rule of law is only a mirage in the remote, dusty town of Artesia, New Mexico, where the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is holding more than 600 Honduran, Salvadoran, and Guatemalan women and children. The… Read More
House and Senate Face Stalemate over Proposals to Fund Border Challenges
Members in the House and Senate are offering competing proposals to address humanitarian needs as child migrants cross the U.S.-Mexico border alone, but it could be difficult to reconcile the two plans before the August recess. The Obama administration requested $3.7 billion in additional funding earlier this month. Read More
DOJ Adds Temp Judges and Shifts Priorities in Response to Unaccompanied Minors
Congress has long neglected the immigration court system, like so many other aspects of our immigration infrastructure. For years, while the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has dedicated more and more resources to immigration enforcement efforts, resources for the immigration courts have not commensurately increased. As a result, immigration courts cannot keep up with their current workload. This has become increasingly evident as courts struggle to handle the growing number of deportation cases DHS has brought against unaccompanied children. And while the Obama administration has requested emergency supplemental funding to hire 25 new immigration judges, it is unclear whether this funding will materialize. In an attempt to bring some immediate relief, the Department of Justice announced a new rule that permits the Department to hire temporary judges. Read More
Dearth of work visas slow Houston’s tech scene
Houston and U.S. technology companies in over 200 metropolitan areas faced difficulties hiring workers due to a lack of H-1B worker’s visas, a recent study shows. According to a study produced by the Partnership for a New American Economy, in 2007 and 2008, the system of… Read More
Study: Providing Representation for Indigent Immigrants Could Pay for Itself
U.S. immigration laws provide only minimal due process protections for even the most vulnerable immigrants facing deportation, and in 59 percent of cases, immigrants are forced to navigate the byzantine immigration court system without representation, including many unaccompanied children. Many do not… Read More
Immigration Courts’ Computer Malfunction Slows an Already Crowded System
For more than a month, the computer system that manages federal immigration court cases has been down due to a massive malfunction. According to a notice on the website for the Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR), which oversees immigration courts, “A hardware failure has resulted in the… Read More
America's story is an immigrant story.
