Asylum and Its Discontents in the United States
The United Nations has released a new report on Asylum Levels and Trends in Industrialized Countries for 2009. Some of the report’s key findings: Afghani Refugee Compared to 2008, the overall number of asylum-seekers remained the same with 377,000 applications, despite significant regional disparities highlighted by the report. Afghans topped the list of asylum applicants … Read more
In Matter of Ramirez-Peyro, an unpublished decision dated March 18, 2010, the BIA finalized a grant of Convention Against Torture relief for a Mexican drug informant, Guillermo “Lalo” Ramirez-Peyro. The BIA held: In the absence of a showing that the Mexican government has succeeded in its efforts to curtail corruption in law enforcement, the respondent … Read more
Chicago Public Radio reports that a record case load at the Chicago Immigration Court is causing hardship for asylum seekers: Chicago’s federal immigration court is backed up with a record 8,696 cases. The average wait for a hearing is more than a year. Some immigrants don’t mind, since the backlog buys them time here. But it’s … Read more
The Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) of Syracuse University recently received a fee request from USCIS for a whopping $111,930.00 for Freedom of Information Act expenses. TRAC is a “data gathering, data research and data distribution organization” whose mission is to “provide the American people — and institutions of oversight such as Congress, news organizations, public interest … Read more
According to a column in the Minnesota Daily, the number of asylum seekers who are detained by the U.S. government has increased dramatically in the last 10 years. I have some questions about the statistics cited in the article, which states: Ten years ago, the number of detained asylum seekers in the United States was … Read more
Immigrant rights groups continue to come out in favor of the Refugee Protection Act of 2010, introduced last week by Senator Patrick Leahy, Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. The American Immigration Lawyers Association issued a statement: “This is a significant piece of legislation that comes at the right time given the global unrest that troubles our … Read more
The reversal rate for BIA cases in all federal circuit courts for 2009 averaged 11.12%, according to the EOIR Immigration Law Advisor, vol. 4, no. 2. The reversal rate has dropped every year for the last four years: 2009 (11.12%), 2008 (12.6%), 2007 (15.3%), and 2006 (17.5%). For aliens appealing adverse BIA decisions, the most difficult circuit court for … Read more
Senators Leahy (D-VT) and Levin (D-MI) introduced the Refugee Protection Act of 2010 (S. 3113) on Monday. The new bill seeks to ensure that legitimate refugees and asylum seekers are protected by the United States. Key provisions of the bill: Increased Protections for Asylum Seekers: Eliminates the requirement that asylum applicants file their claim within one … Read more
From the Heartland Alliance’s National Immigrant Justice Center: Heartland Alliance’s National Immigrant Justice Center and 30 other national and international immigrant and human rights organizations, think tanks, and academics have petitioned the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Department of Justice (DOJ) to issue regulations allowing the release of detained asylum seekers who pose no danger to … Read more
Syracuse University’s Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) has issued a new report confirming what immigration attorneys already know: the waiting time for cases in the Immigration Courts is longer than ever. From my experience, a typical case in the over-burdened Arlington, Virginia court takes almost two years. It turns out, Arlington isn’t the slowest court … Read more