In defiance of Biden administration orders, U.S Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) deported at least 72 people to Haiti — including 21 children and a two-month-old infant — on Monday, reports Ed Pilkington of The Guardian.  

"Last Friday, the administration appeared to gain the upper hand in its attempt to rein in [ICE] when deportation flights to Haiti were suspended. But on Monday the immigration agency reasserted itself again with the renewed flights to Port-au-Prince, children and infants on board."  

Haiti is currently "embroiled in rapidly mounting political turmoil," immigrant advisers said, raising concerns over the safety of the deported children. "I fear for the kids being sent into the middle of this uprising," said Guerline Jozef, executive director of the Haitian Bridge Alliance. "It’s as if there is a house burning, and instead of taking people out for their own safety the United States is sending defenseless babies into the burning house."  

Welcome to Tuesday’s edition of Noorani’s Notes. If you have a story to share from your own community, please send it to me at  [email protected]. 

 WAGE RULE — One of the less prominent pieces of "unfinished business" that President Trump and Stephen Miller left for the Biden administration to address is a final rule on wages from the Department of Labor (DOL), Stuart Anderson writes for Forbes. The rule was part of the Trump administration’s "longstanding goal to price out of the U.S. labor market employment-based immigrants, international students and H-1B visa holders," Anderson explains. The takeaway here? "[T]he authority cited for the DOL final rule by Trump’s Department of Labor no longer exists. … This should not be a difficult choice for the Biden administration on what to do with the rule." 

BORDERLANDS — President Biden signed an order pausing border wall construction on his first day in office, but stopping construction for good will be more complicated. Hundreds of landowners along the U.S.-Mexico border who have been fighting eminent domain are still in limbo and unaware of the status of their land, Elizabeth Findell and Michelle Hackman report for The Wall Street Journal. Landowners like the Cavazos family, who have been fighting government efforts to seize some of their property, were "one hearing away from having the government take possession" when Biden took office in January. "Recently, government lawyers have withdrawn their requests for immediate possession in some of the cases. However, the cases remain pending, with several hearings set for March," Findell and Hackman note. In other border news: Sandra Sanchez at Border Report reveals that U.S. Border Patrol is dismantling its aerostat program, known for "‘eyes in the sky’ tethered surveillance blimps that have for years dotted the skyline of South Texas," due to high costs. The move comes "as the new Biden administration has announced it will implement a ‘Smart Border’ program and is currently reevaluating its tactical and border operations." 

'A HIGHER COURT' — Court records reveal brutal treatment of Latino workers by federal agents and Tennessee Highway Patrol troopers during a 2018 raid at a slaughterhouse, reports Jamie Satterfield at the Knoxville News Sentinel. The harrowing account of the raid led Chief U.S. District Judge Travis McDonough to make a remarkable appeal for the U.S. Supreme Court "to lift the shield of immunity granted to federal law enforcement officers." Wrote Judge McDonough in a Jan. 31 ruling: "The lesson here is that federal agents can avoid accountability for their violations of the Constitution by simply excluding state and local agencies from their next operation. … Perhaps a higher court will recognize causes of action that more directly address agents’ searches and seizures based on skin color." 

MILITARY FAMILIES — Deportations of veterans as well as military family members under the Trump administration will be reviewed by the Biden administration, Tara Copp reports for McClatchy. Marine Corps Sgt. Temo Juarez, who served from 1995 to 1999 and was then deployed to Iraq as a member of the Florida National Guard, "assumed his military service would protect his wife, Alejandra, who is from Mexico, from deportation." But immigration authorities deported Alejandra to Mexico in 2018, leaving Temo to care for the couple’s two daughters.  "[T]he administration’s immigration enforcement will focus on those who are national security and public safety threats, not military families, service members or veterans," said White House assistant press secretary Vedant Patel. Given the potential changes, Alejandra Juarez "is hoping the administration will grant her a humanitarian visa so she can return to the United States to be with her family." 

IMMIGRANT DETENTION — Immigrant advocates say Félix Montes de Oca Marcelino’s death — the first death in ICE custody under Biden — is "an urgent reminder" for the Biden administration to stop using private prison contractors to detain immigrants," Catherine E. Shoichet writes for CNN. While the Biden administration has directed the Justice Department not to renew private prison contracts, "that decision didn't apply to other government contracts with private prison companies" (e.g. Homeland Security contracts for immigration detention facilities). "[W]e'll defer to the secretary of Homeland Security for more specifics about the path forward," White House press secretary Jen Psaki said when asked about Biden’s plans.  

DACA — While the reinstatement of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) is wonderful news for hundreds of thousands of immigrants brought to the U.S. as children, a Texas lawsuit leaves the program’s fate uncertain, reports the Houston Chronicle’s Olivia P. Tallet. While their future remains in limbo, more people like Vanessa Rodríguez — who has been in the U.S. since age seven and now has three American children — are applying for protection. "After being demonized during the last four years, immigrants like me are feeling hopeful now with the new government," said Leezia Dhalla, immigration press director at FWD.us. But the looming lawsuit "could change the rules and dreamers could be back in limbo and at risk of deportation again if Congress doesn’t act."