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THE LATEST FILINGS
- Investigating ICE’s Implementation of its New Enforcement Priorities
When the Biden administration took office in January 2021, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced new enforcement priorities for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to reflect the Administration’s values and priorities for the enforcement of immigration laws. ICE issued a memorandum on February 18 clarifying the new enforcement priorities and directing, ICE officers to exercise prosecutorial discretion and focus agency resources on pursuing enforcement actions against individuals 1) who may pose a threat to national security, 2) who were apprehended at the border trying to unlawfully enter the country or who entered unlawfully on or after November 1, 2020, and 3) who may present a risk to public safety – defined as people convicted of an aggravated felony or involved in certain gang-related activities.
The February 18 memorandum also required ICE to compile weekly reports about its enforcement actions to ensure compliance with the new guidelines and instructed officers to seek supervisory preapproval to take enforcement actions against individuals who were outside the enforcement priorities.
The Council, along with the Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC) and Mijente Support Committee, filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests for 1) weekly reports ICE is compiling pursuant to the February 18 memo; and 2) records relating to officers’ requests for preapproval for enforcement actions that do not meet the newly established guidelines. Information in response to these FOIAs will provide crucial insight into how ICE is implementing these enforcement guidelines.
Read More: Seeking Records About ICE’s Compliance with DHS’s Enforcement Priorities
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Examining BIA’s Treatment of Motions to Reconsider Orders of Removal
Motions to reconsider before the BIA are filed to identify an error in fact or law in a prior BIA decision. Several courts of appeals have held or suggested that to seek review in federal court, a noncitizen must first have filed a motion to reconsider with the BIA. Because the failure to file a motion to reconsider may limit the availability of federal court review, immigration practitioners, noncitizens, and the public deserve to better understand BIAs treatment of motions to reconsider.
The Council and Immigrant Legal Defense (ILD) filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request to learn more about trends in BIA’s decisions regarding motions to reconsider orders of removal. The FOIA asks for data on motions to reconsider filed with the BIA between FY 2011 and the present.
Read More: Requesting Information About Board of Immigration Appeals' Treatment of Motions to Reconsider
NOTEWORTHY
- Supporting Effort of State FOIA Request in Wrongful Detention Case
In Calhoun County, Michigan, a U.S. citizen was wrongfully detained by the sheriff’s office on behalf of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). After his release, he tried to obtain information from the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office through a state FOIA request to explain why he had been wrongfully detained. The sheriff’s office blocked disclosure of information about his detention, however, by invoking federal regulation 8 C.F.R. 236.6. The regulation prohibits local jails from releasing information about an individual detained on ICE’s behalf. The ACLU of Michigan sued Calhoun County for release of the documents, but the Michigan Court of Appeals affirmed Calhoun County’s position.
The Council joined several other organizations and researchers to file an amicus brief with the Michigan Supreme Court urging the state’s highest court to review the Court of Appeals’ unfavorable decision and uphold the state’s commitment to government transparency.
Read More: Urging Supreme Court of Michigan to Support Detained Individual's Right to Access Records
DIG DEEPER
The American Immigration Council works to hold the government accountable on immigration issues. We harness freedom of information requests, litigation, and advocacy to expose wrongdoing and promote transparency within immigration agencies.
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