Due Process is Being Hurt by COVID-19
Michelle Saenz-Rodriguez • Mar 30, 2020
Could the immigration courts get more chaotic?
Coronavirus adds to stress
Fights, riot at detention centers intensify calls to free detained immigrants
As counties and states go into shelter in place, Immigration courts across the nation are still open, counter to what the CDC has advised for public safety. Federal criminal courts closed two weeks ago. The cruelty of the Trump Immigration policies continue to be on full display. We at Saenz-Rodriguez & Associates have done everything we can to make sure our staff and clients are safe and healthy. We are offering Zoom consultations as our most of staff are working from home.
Even with these precautions for our staff and clients, deadlines must be met and documents have to be organized, copied and prepared for filing - I wish I could do it all from home. The government does not care about the risk to detainees, advocates or even their own employees who are still working everyday. It’s so sad.
I’m actually in my office ( we are essential business for as long as courts remain open) - no staff just me....but I still have to open doors, get in elevators, use a phone, handle documents etc. That means the more protection the better. Just trying to be socially responsible while I am not at home.
Bond hearings are taking place via telephone and in-person as it depends on the Judge presiding over the case. We would love to leave all of the personal protective equipment for those in the medical field, however most immigration cases are business as usual and with confirmed cases of COVID19 within the immigration court system, we as lawyers and clients must protect ourselves while being forced to either show up in a courthouse with more than ten people present or hope for telephone hearings, which may not be in the best interest of the clients case. Due process is being denied to our clients by the Executive Office for Immigration Review.
“We are given a ‘false choice’ because we are forced to choose between exposing our clients, ourselves, our families or giving up the due process rights that our clients deserve. It’s an unacceptable proposition for all of us.” @michellesralaw https://t.co/4mcQS0Cqr1
— AILA (@AILANational) March 28, 2020
We will continue to fight for our clients' rights and safety. The government should, at the very least, release detained migrants with no criminal records and those with health conditions that make them more vulnerable to the coronavirus. Forcing people to remain in detention centers only converts them to true concentration camps during this public health crisis.
As one reply on Twitter puts it, "Thousands of appeals headed their way while the noncitizens remain detained until those appeals are decided. A huge avoidable mess."
The United States has extended a protected status program that prevents migrants from being deported to mid-2024 for citizens of six countries, including Haiti and three Central American nations, its immigration service said on Thursday.
The Temporary Protected Status (TPS) will be extended to June 30, 2024, for citizens of Haiti, El Salvador, Nicaragua, Sudan, Honduras, and Nepal, according to a document filed by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
Final Rule: We no longer have to wait for an asylum application to be pending 365 days before applying for work authorization. The rules were changed back to 180 days instead.
George was recently announced as a 2022 honoree from the State Bar of Texas' Immigration & Nationality Section for the Mentorship Award.
From Chair Roy Petty:
"George has the answers. For years he has guided attorneys in resolving detention and removal matters. George served for more than 14 years as the AILA liaison to Dallas ICE. He frequently speaks on immigration law topics, including advising lesser experienced attorneys to represent their clients effectively and ethically. George has taught immigration law at SMU Dedman School of Law. He serves on the Board of the National Hispanic Institute and the Bishop’s Immigration Taskforce. He is the Co-chair of the Bachman Lake Together Board. He is one of the founders of the BeGolden Journey campaign which promotes treating immigrants with dignity and compassion. And, he still finds the time to answer questions of fellow attorneys."
