Webinar
on
Prosecutorial
Discretion
Thursday,
March
8
th,
2012
2
P.M.
Eastern/11
A.M.
Pacific
For
audio,
please
dial
1
‐
866
‐
910
‐
4857
and
use
code
359217
Welcome
to
this
webinar
presented
by
the
U.S.
Conference
of
Catholic
Bishop’s
Today’s
speakers:
Kevin
Appleby,
Director,
Migration
Policy
Office
‐
USCCB/MRS
Sara
Ibrahim,
Immigration
Policy
Advisor
‐
USCCB/MRS
Tony
Cube,
JFI
Manager
‐
USCCB/MRS
Allison
Posner,
Director,
Advocacy
Section
‐
CLINIC
This
webinar
is
being
recorded.
Call
202
‐
541
‐
3165
with
questions
about
the
webinar
or
any
of
This
webinar
will
cover
the
following
areas:
1. Overview
:
What
is
Prosecutorial
Discretion,
Recent
U.S.
Guidance
on
PD
&
USSCB
Position
2. A
View
from
the
Field
: How
are
Legal
Advocates
Seeing
the
Policy
Memos
at
Work?
3. Next
Steps
:
JFI
Action
Alert
for
outreach
to
ICE
OVERVIEW
•
What
is
prosecutorial
discretion
(PD)?
•
Recent
U.S.
government
guidance
on
PD
•
REMEMBER
immigration
law
is
complex.
If
you
are
asked
about
prosecutorial
discretion,
make
sure
the
person
has
an
attorney
and
if
not,
recommend
that
they
speak
to
a
qualified
immigration
attorney
about
their
situation.
Legal
Resources
:
–
Catholic
Legal
Immigration
Network
(CLINIC
)
–
American
Immigration
Lawyer’s
Association
(AILA
)
“prosecutorial
discretion
is
the
authority
of
an
agency
charged
with
enforcing
a
law
to
decide
to
what
degree
to
enforce
the
law
against
a
particular
individual....When
ICE
favorably
exercises
prosecutorial
discretion,
it
essentially
decides
not
to
assert
the
full
scope
of
enforcement
authority
available...”
John
Morton
Immigration
and
Customs
Enforcement
(ICE)
Memo,
June
2011
How
do
immigrants
get
placed
in
deportation
proceedings?
• As a result of “random” traffic stops or traffic violations;
• Through immigration enforcement programs, such as Secure Communities and
287(g), with local law enforcement agencies;
• By reporting a crime which leads to the discovery of the unlawful status of
reporter of the crime or the victim;
• By committing a minor offense or non‐violent crime;
The
Morton
Memo
and
actions
related
to
it
John Morton:
Director of Immigration & Customs Enforcement
•
June
2011
Memo:
“ICE must prioritize the use of its enforcement personnel, detention space, and removal assets to ensure
that the aliens it removes represent, as much as reasonably possible, the agency's enforcement priorities,
namely the promotion of national security, border security, public safety, and the integrity of the
immigration system. “
•
November
2011
Guidance:
Review
of
deportation
cases:
Baltimore
and
Denver
(more
High
Priorities
and
Low
Priorities
for
ICE
High
Priority
Categories:
• individuals posing a clear risk to national security or public safety;
• serious felons, repeat offenders, or those with a lengthy criminal record;
• known gang members;
• others defined as high priority.
Low
Priority
Categories:
• Individuals who have very long‐term presence in the U.S., have an immediate family
member who is a U.S. citizen, and has established compelling ties and made compelling
contributions to the U.S.
• individuals present in the U.S. since childhood (i.e. DREAM)
• longtime lawful permanent residents;
• veterans and members of the U.S. armed forces;
• minors and elderly individuals;
• victims of domestic violence, trafficking or other serious crimes;
What
does
it
all
mean?
• When an immigrant’s case for deportation is reviewed, ICE agents will evaluate
the case using a list of relevant factors and determine whether or not the
immigrant is in one of the high priority categories for removal;
• If it is determined that the case is a low priority, ICE officers can choose to
administratively close the case for deportation and allow the immigrant to stay
What
happens
when
favorable
prosecutorial
discretion
is
granted
in
the
review
process?
• the case is ‘administratively closed’ and the immigrant is allowed to stay in the U.S.;
• there is no change in immigration status;
• a pathway to legalization or citizenship is not provided;
• the case can be re‐opened and the immigrant again placed in deportation
proceedings;
• the immigrant is not provided with a work permit and is unable to work in the U.S.
Need
for
the
Program
•
Prioritization
of
cases
to
make
best
use
of
valuable
scarce
resources
•
Provide
relief
from
deportation
(however,
cases
can
be
re
‐
opened)
•
Help
eliminate
the
severe
backlog
in
immigration
The
Catholic
Bishops
Respond
‐ Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los Angeles, Chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Migration
“The U.S. Catholic bishops welcomed your August 18, 2011, announcement that the Administration will establish a new, two‐pronged process to ensure that its immigration enforcement resources are focused on what the Administration has, in recent memoranda, identified as “high priority” individuals for removal. We urge your expeditious implementation of this proposal, as vulnerable immigrants who are “low‐priority” remain at imminent risk of deportation.”
The U.S. Catholic bishops urged DHS to prioritize:
• (1) families, as defined under current federal immigration law;
• (2) vulnerable populations, including the mentally and physically disabled
and victims of crimes;
• (3) children and individuals who were brought to the United States as
minors, through no fault of their own;
• (4) pregnant and nursing women;
• (5) those with long‐term presence in the United States and other equities,
such as U.S. citizen children or spouses and contributions to their
communities through their work, faith communities, among other means,
and
• (6) clergy and religious who serve in faith communities.” For full text of letter:
What
is
happening
now
with
Prosecutorial
Discretion?
• Supervisors at ICE have been trained;
• In late 2011, pilot programs in Denver and Baltimore reviewed current
deportation cases in those offices to determine which could receive PD;
• A recent American Immigration Lawyers Association and America Immigration
Council report found that, “in the majority of offices ICE agents, trial attorneys
and supervisors admitted they had not implemented the memoranda and
there had been no changes in policy or practice.”
• Full implementation of the PD guidelines as instructed by the ICE Director
CLINIC’s
View
From
the
Field
CLINIC, a subsidiary of USCCB, is the nation’s largest, most productive charitable legal agency for immigrants (www.cliniclegal.org)
* Though trial attorneys have been cooperative, there have been
difficulties with communication
* Inconsistencies with application across the country * Detained cases not being reviewed
* Offers increase after a file is supplemented with additional evidence
What
Advocates
are
Doing
*
Asking DHS to share statistics
* Sharing stories with each other
* Urging DHS to hold public information sessions, reach out to sources of
information trusted by immigrant communities, plainly and in multiple
languages
Next
Steps
What
SHOULD
be
happening
‐
Part
One
ICE and CBP officials must immediately implement the prosecutorial discretion
guidance outlined by ICE Director Morton in the November 2011 memo.
As advocates, we need to contact our local and regional ICE offices and ask that
their officers use their PD authority.
JFI staff can provide an action alert that your networks may send to ICE offices
asking for implementation of the PD guidelines. Here is more information about ICE’s Field Offices:
Atlanta Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility:GA, NC, SC 180 Spring Street SW, Suite 522
Atlanta, GA 30303 Phone:(404) 893‐1210
Baltimore Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: Maryland 31 Hopkins Plaza, 7th Floor
Baltimore, MD 21201 Phone:(410) 637‐4000
Boston Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: CT, Maine, MA, NH, RI, VT 10 New England Executive Park
Burlington, MA 01803 Phone:(781) 359‐7500
Buffalo Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: Upstate New York 130 Delaware Avenue
Buffalo, NY 14202 Phone: (716) 843‐7600
Chicago Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: IL, IN, WI, MO, KY, KS 101 West Congress Parkway, 4th Floor
Chicago, Illinois 60605 Phone: (312) 347‐2400
Dallas Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: North Texas, Oklahoma 8101 N. Stemmons Frwy
Dallas, TX 75247 Phone:(214) 424‐7800
Denver Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility:Colorado, Wyoming 12445 E. Caley Avenue
Centennial, CO 80111 Phone:(720) 873‐2899
Detroit Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility:Michigan, Ohio 333 Mt. Elliott St.
Detroit, MI 48207 Phone: (313) 568‐6049
El Paso Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: West Texas, New Mexico 1545 Hawkins Blvd
El Paso, TX 79925 Phone:(915) 225‐0885
Houston Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility:Southeast Texas 126 Northpoint Drive
Houston, TX 77060 Phone:(281) 774‐4816
Los Angeles Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility:Los Angeles Metro Area (Counties of Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino), and Central Coast (Counties of Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo)
300 North Los Angeles St., Room 7631A Los Angeles, CA 90012 Phone: (213) 830‐7911
Miami Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: Florida, Puerto Rico, U.S. Virgin Islands 865 SW 78th Avenue, Suite 101
Plantation, FL 33324 Phone:(954) 236‐4900
Newark Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility:New Jersey 614 Frelinghuysen Ave., 3rd Floor
Newark, NJ 07112 Phone: (973) 645‐3666
New Orleans Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: AL, AR, LA, MS, TN 1250 Poydras Suite 325
New Orleans, LA 70113 Phone:(504) 599‐7800
New York Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility:The five boroughs (counties of NYC) and the following counties: Duchess, Nassau, Putnam, Suffolk, Sullivan, Orange, Rockland, Ulster, and Westchester
26 Federal Plaza 9th Floor, Suite 9‐110
New York, NY 10278 Phone:(212) 264‐4213
Philadelphia Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: DE, PA, WV 1600 Callowhill St., 6th Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19130 Phone: (215) 656‐7164
Phoenix Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility:Arizona 2035 N. Central Avenue
Phoenix, AZ 85004 Phone:(602) 766‐7030
Salt Lake City Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility:Utah, Idaho, Montana, Nevada 2975 Decker Lake Drive, Suite 100
W. Valley City, UT 84119‐6096 Phone: (801) 886‐7400
San Antonio Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: Central South Texas 1777 NE Loop 410, Suite 1500
San Antonio, TX 78217 Phone:(210) 283‐4750
San Diego Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: San Diego and Imperial County 880 Front Street, Suite 2232
San Diego, CA 92101 Phone:(619) 557‐6343
San Francisco Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: Northern California, Hawaii, Guam 630 Sansome Street, Rm 590
San Francisco, CA 94111 Phone:(415) 844‐5512
Seattle Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility:Alaska, Oregon, Washington 12500 Tukwila International Blvd.
Seattle, WA 98168 Phone:(206) 835‐0650
St Paul Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: IA, MN, NE, ND, SD 2901 Metro Dr., Suite 100
Bloomington, MN 55425 Phone: (952) 853‐2550
Washington Field Office ‐Area of Responsibility: District of Columbia and Virginia 2675 Prosperity Avenue, 3rd Floor
Work authorization should be given to those granted prosecutorial
discretion. Work permits for immigrants allowed to stay in the country
are important so that they may support themselves and their families. You may send a letter to the President asking that he direct DHS to
provide work authorization to individuals whose cases are
administratively closed under the prosecutorial discretion guidance. The
letter may be sent from the www.justiceforimmigrants.org homepage.
