Immigration Extended DiscussionContains unread posts
I realize this is a hot-button topic and can raise blood pressure a bit. However, my goal is to get you thinking about current issues, to connect the classwork to the real world. Please, please, please keep the new discussion rules about civility and respect in mind.
In all my time as a public defender, I did not come across too many immigration issues. Maybe I wasn’t in the right jurisdictions. I don’t know. I do know toward the end of my time I came across a client with a unique victim situation. The victim was applying for a U visa, as a result of my client’s alleged actions. There was no possibility the vic didn’t come to testify, etc. So what is a U visa?
“The U nonimmigrant status (U visa) is set aside for victims of certain crimes who have suffered mental or physical abuse and are helpful to law enforcement or government officials in the investigation or prosecution of criminal activity.” (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services)
The current problem is “a New York immigration advocacy and support group has seen a surge of almost 80 percent in the number of reports of abusive partners threatening to call the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency on their victims to discourage them from pressing charges since early 2017 when the Trump administration took power.” (Newsweek)
Current immigration enforcement actions have led to situations like the following:
Maria, a 39-year-old mother from Colombia, spoke no English. She had no friends nearby, no money, and had overstayed her visa after coming to the U.S. legally. But after her fiancé allegedly assaulted her and her 15-year-old son during an argument, she said a prayer and picked up the phone.
“It was terrifying to call the police,” said Maria, whose last name is being withheld because she is a victim of domestic violence. “But I dug up the courage. I told myself I had to do something.”
That call would prove fateful. Maria’s fiancé, a U.S. citizen named Danny, was charged with assault. In July, as Maria and her son appeared at the Mecklenburg County courthouse for a hearing related to the incident, federal immigration agents arrested them. Maria and her son were handcuffed and led away as she cried for her other child, a toddler she had left in daycare. (NBC article)
Furthermore, while generally speaking local law enforcement are not required to ask about a victim or witness’s immigration status, if a victim wants to remain in the U.S. they will need law enforcement to fill out the U visa documentation, thereby revealing the victim’s immigration status. (Bwjp pdf included in readings module)
Here are the tough questions:
Assess the pros and cons of establishing “sanctuaries,” like courthouses or medical offices, where ICE won’t go arrest people who don’t have legal immigration status. Consider the impact to criminal prosecutions or children watching their parents be arrested after dropping them off at school if ICE doesn’t establish “sanctuaries.” Is immigration enforcement sufficient justification to overcome the long-standing historical practice of “sanctuary”?
We can’t stop a defendant or their family or friends from anonymously reporting the victim or witness to ICE. However, imagine if law enforcement was prohibited from sharing information gained during the course of an investigation about a victim or witness with ICE. Assess whether this would be sufficient protection to encourage witnesses to cooperate with law enforcement or if law enforcement should wait until the conclusion of court proceedings so the witness/victim can apply for the U visa.
Finally, discuss what should happen to any witness/victim who has reported a crime and is cooperating with law enforcement and the prosecution but whose U visa hasn’t yet been processed (it can take upwards of 5 years). Should all deportation proceedings be suspended with appropriate documentation? Should they be held in an immigration detention facility? Released on an immigration bond (similar to a standard criminal bond)? If they are detained, given that immigrants in detention are moved frequently, should ICE be required to keep location information current and facilitate information-sharing between a detained immigrant and the visa processing office? Complete the assignment in paragraph form. Your “post” should be at least 800 words and all citations should be in APA format. At least 2 appropriately academic resources are required and the text is not an appropriate reference.
The post Immigration Extended DiscussionContains unread posts
I realize this is a hot-but appeared first on Homeworkassisters.
