Big Legislative Wins in NY

After the close of the NY legislative session on June 10th, IDP and its Justice Roadmap partners celebrated a number of hard-fought victories:

• In early June, both houses passed the Equal Access to Appellate Rights bill with overwhelming support. The bill, which now awaits the Governor's signature, will improve access to appellate counsel for noncitizens who can be targeted by ICE based on prior convictions.
• Eight bills in the Justice Roadmap were also passed this session, including the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act and the repeal of the Walking While Trans Ban. IDP worked with the Start SMART Coalition, Drug Policy Alliance, and legislators to shape language in the marijuana bill that allows immigrants with convictions get their records expunged and vacated.  

As we look to next year, IDP will continue to fight the criminalization of immigrant communities. Immigrants across the state are being targeted by ICE, and because of that, it is imperative the New York For All Act is made into law.  New York must also address the far-reaching surveillance systems at work in our state, including the Ban Rogue DNA Databases Bill and the Ban Biometric Surveillance Bill. For more on our work, check out IDP's 2021-22 NY State Legislative Priorities.

Victory at the Supreme Court

On June 10th, the Supreme Court delivered a significant win to people facing federal criminal charges AND to immigrants in a case called Borden v. United States. The Court rejected the government’s expansive definition of what counts as a “violent felony” under a racist "three strikes" law called the Armed Career Criminal Act. Borden has significant implications for noncitizens who are charged with so-called “crime of violence” aggravated felonies or “crimes of domestic violence” based on recklessness, and it has the potential to protect countless immigrants from mandatory detention and deportation. Together with Akin & Gump, IDP filed an amicus brief in the case, highlighting the potentially devastating impact of an adverse decision on immigrants. This week, IDP issued a Practice Advisory for immigration counsel along with a Sample Motion to Reconsider and Terminate Removal Proceedings with NIP and NILA.

Testifying on ICE Detainers @ NYC Council

On June 9th, IDP Senior Staff Attorney Genia Blaser testified at a hearing on New York City’s detainer law before the City Council’s Immigration Committee. The hearing was prompted by revelations that the Department of Corrections violated the law by illegally turning over immigrant New Yorkers to ICE including Javier Castillo Maradiaga, who was recently featured in the New Yorker. Genia highlighted how the Department of Corrections maintains extensive communication channels with ICE which violate the “spirit of the detainer law.” As Genia told the Council members, the Department of Corrections’ cooperation with ICE “has an irreparable impact on immigrant New Yorkers who find themselves in ICE’s crosshairs after coming into contact with the NYPD.” 

ICEWatch Map Gets a Facelift

Thanks to our pro bono developer from Streetwide, IDP's ICEwatch map has had a facelift! Launched in 2018 in partnership with The Center for Constitutional Rights, ICEwatch is an interactive map that has almost 1600 ICE raids or attempted raids which have been verified by IDP. Some notable map features include filtering reports by date, type of raid, NYS county, and common ICE tactics. There is also an upgraded word search to find raids reports. To see examples of ICE's cruelty, try typing these words into the search box: crying, pregnant, gun, dentures, and barber shop. Visit our website for more IDP resources on ICE raids.

Updated Practice Advisory on Realistic Probability

IDP issued an important new advisory with NIP, updating our guidance on how to effectively litigate the realistic probability issue in categorical approach cases. The practice advisory discusses the origins of the "realistic probability" concept in immigration law, national case law on realistic probability, litigation issues currently before the immigration agencies and federal courts, and practice tips for individual litigants confronting realistic probability issues in their cases.