Comments for AILA Leadership Blog

Comment on New Immigration Rule Will Keep American Families Safe and Together by jdmattos

jdmattos — Wed, 11 Jan 2012 19:36:07 +0000

If an I-601 was already filed oversees and denied, what would the procedure be? Could we re-file in the US under the new law if we qualify under US citizenship?

Comment on Message to USCIS: Support Your Local (and National) Postal Service by Robert Lewis

Robert Lewis — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 01:49:37 +0000

We had to file an I-485 at VSC within 4 years of issuance of U status. That deadline was Saturday June 18th. We used USPS Express (overnight, right?) Mail, postmarked at the local post office on Thursday June 16th. USPS delivery confirmation reflects that the package was delivered to the proper VSC address on Saturday June 18th (our deadline). Unfortunately, the receipt from VSC reflects a receipt date of Monday June 20th. Too late! I will write a letter to challenge their receipt date, with evidence of delivery date, but according to a 2007 VSC Liaison Meeting Minutes, “If the mail is received at the post office after our second pickup [for the day], the mail is considered to have been received the following day.” Under what authority may VSC “consider” any date other than the date actually delivered to the address they provide for filing?!?

Comment on Undone By His Politics Of Hate: The Political Demise of State Senator Russell Pearce by PeterAshman

PeterAshman — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 21:37:21 +0000

Here’s hoping we’ve seen the worst of this kind of restrictionist scapegoating. I’m so pleased that the good people of Arizona have done this that I may just go visit my mother there for the holidays.

Comment on Secretary Napolitano’s Immigration Policy Speech, Prosecutorial Discretion, and Decency by Ally Bolour

Ally Bolour — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 22:50:25 +0000

Targeting children, for any reason, is incomprehensible.

Comment on IIRAIRA 15 Years Later by Jeri Flynn

Jeri Flynn — Fri, 30 Sep 2011 22:09:36 +0000

I began practicing immigration and nationality law in 1978 and joined AILA in 1982. I was quite active in AILA for a number of years. After IIRAIA, after closing out cases already opened, I just quit doing removal work. I felt it had gotten so negative and depressing. Thank Goodness for the many practicing and dedicated immigration lawyers who continue to challenge this draconian (I word I learned to use in 1996) law and continue to win hard-fought victories against it. I know that they will continue the good fight, as I will in a quieter way. Sincerely, Jeri Ann Flynn (Baton Rouge LA)

Comment on The Morton Memo: Supplemental Guidance for ICE Agents by John Randolph

John Randolph — Thu, 22 Sep 2011 02:10:16 +0000

This change in policy puts ICE agents in a horrible predicament.

As a retired USBP/INS/ICE agent, the question that comes in my mind is one of liability.

What would happen if an ICE agent follows Morton’s memo and God forbid, the “low priority” person that he or she chooses to release ends up in a traffic accident that kills innocent people?

Just because the agent follows the memo does not mean that he or she would not be sued along with Morton, Napolitano, DHS, and Obama too.

I hope all ICE agents who follow this memo have plenty of liability insurance and make sure that any memo driven releases that he or she makes is well documented and signed off upon by all immediate supervisors.

Comment on Fixing Secure Communities: A View From Inside The Advisory Task Force by omvega

omvega — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 14:22:17 +0000

While it is undoubtedly welcome that attention is being paid to the excesses in deporting non-citizen, non-criminals, I would be equally cautious about reinforcing the overly broad concept of non-citizen “criminals” being deported. The reason has less to do with the hardened non-citizen criminals who have committed some violent offense and are deported, but rather other sub-categories of deportable “serious crimes”, which include misdemeanor and other offenses that have been reclassified into Level 1 and Level 2 Serious Crimes.

For example, today around 10% of all deportations deal with serious “crimes” involving LPRs (Legal Permanent Residents). Based on detailed data provided by the Salvadoran immigration officials, from 2006 to 2010 approximately 3,536 Salvadorans were deported from the U.S. for DUI-related (Driving under the Influence of Alcohol) crimes, the second-leading cause of deportations involving Salvadorans. In the main, these individuals represent heads of household who have long-term residencies in the U.S. and possess permanent residency. The personal-familial narratives surrounding the deportations of these non-violent persons who committed a DUI-related offense – in some cases twenty years ago – is often tragic and harrowing. Surely, this type of “crime” should be recategorized to its former status to avoid the kinds of tragedies we are witnessing today.

The second type of case involves “illegal re-entry” crimes. Over the past decade, but particularly under the Obama administration, the levels of prosecutions for the serious felony crime of “illegal re-entry” into the U.S. has skyrocketed from 7,919 cases in 2000 to 35,386 cases in 2010 (http://trac.syr.edu/immigration/reports/251/include/imm_charges.html). These cases mostly involve “economic” migrants (read non-criminal undocumented workers) from Mexico and Central America. The majority of these people have absolutely no notion that their second apprehension and detention by U.S. authortiies will lead to a minimum 2 year prison sentence. Surely, more effective and humane policy alternatives should be sought to deal with these two types of situations.

Comment on Fixing Secure Communities: A View From Inside The Advisory Task Force by John Randolph

John Randolph — Sat, 17 Sep 2011 21:33:22 +0000

I believe the US immigration system is actually not broken. It is running exactly how those who designed it and those who profit most from it want it to run. The US and Mexican elite profit from the immigration status quo and love the fact that Americans citizens fight over it while their politicians flounder by design.

The rich from both the US and Mexico bankroll their respective elections and stick their smiling candidates’ faces in office. Those “elected” politicians ensure that their bosses’ immigration policies seldom if ever change. Don’t believe what they say. Believe your eyes. For decades this fiasco has operated exactly as designed.

The American people know it is broken, but since when do they have a voice in this? They know what is going on with failed mortgages, failed heath care, and failed economies. As of yet they are not sure about this immigration scam. That reveals the insidiousness of it. The elite’s propaganda has clouded their vision.

And the US backed drug war in Mexico, with 40,000 dead, is the ultimate example of their greed in action mowing down human beings in the process.

It isn’t broken. It is running exactly as designed.

We need to be smarter than the rich. The undocumented are a symptom, not the problem. We could align with the undocumented and use current immigration laws to break the back of their system. Then with the entire World’s eyes upon them , they would have stand for the principles of democracy and fix it.

One huge fix would be to sanction the corrupt Mexican government until they take care of their own good people. That would cure about 50% of our problem.

When will Americans wake up and act?

http://twopesos-protestfortheundocumented.blogspot.com/2011_03_01_archive.html

Comment on Who Won The Republican Debate Last Night? by OldManOfHockey

OldManOfHockey — Thu, 08 Sep 2011 15:33:52 +0000

Best quote from the debate: “every time you think of fence keeping all those bad people out, think about those fences maybe being used against us, keeping us in.” Ron Paul http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/08/us/politics/08republican-debate-text.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all

Comment on Lamar Smith Tries To “HALT!” Smart Enforcement by LetsBeReasonable

LetsBeReasonable — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 22:24:10 +0000

Really? You are playing the Nazi card here over “your” use of the word “halt” (and where did that exclamation point come from)? Are you serious? And in the first entry in this blog string… holy Godwin’s Law on Steroids!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin%27s_law

Maybe Smith was shooting for halta?
http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=halta
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Halta
http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/halta
http://wiki.white-wolf.com/exalted/index.php?title=Halta

Maybe he was shooting for htalta, which could stand for “High Terrain at ALTA” (they have some pretty high elevation ski runs at that ski resort)?

But who knows, maybe you are correct and he’s literally going for the Nazi tie-in. Or not… http://www.thedailyshow.com/watch/thu-january-27-2011/bill-o-reilly-defends-his-nazi-analogies

And even if he “was” shooting for halt….. Nazis???

Come on, let’s be reasonable.