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Advantage Of Legal Representation For Children In Immigration Cases

, Posted in Immigration Law

According to a report by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, a project at Syracuse University that gathers and analyzes federal data, children who have legal representation at immigration hearings fare much better than those who proceed without representation.  Almost one-half of all minors represented by lawyers in immigration court in the past decade eventually won permission to remain in the United States.  But over 90 percent of those without counsel were sent back to their country…

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Long-time Resident Of Dearborn Facing Deportation

, Posted in Immigration Law

A 71 year-old man who sells ice cream from a truck in his home of Dearborn, Michigan now faces potential deportation from the United States. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested Mahmoud Bazzi at his home in Dearborn in the morning July 15, the Detroit Free Press reported. ICE alleges that the Lebanese national may have used a false passport to enter the country decades ago. Mr. Bazzi may also be accused of killing two Irish soldiers…

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White House Signals Refugee Crisis Will Not Deter Executive Action

, Posted in Immigration Law

As lawmakers in Washington have shifted focus away from addressing comprehensive immigration reform towards debate over the humanitarian crisis at the southern border, the White House has signaled that it will not prevent the administration from moving forward on new executive actions to address some immigration issues. According to Jennifer Palmieri, the White House communications director, “The American people see immigration as an urgent issue and want the administration to act to address the problem of…

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Political Debate Obscures Solutions To Refugee Crisis

, Posted in Immigration Law

For the last two weeks or so, images of refugees - mostly children from the countries of El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala - lining up at the southern border to be taken in to custody by federal border agents, has prompted intensification of an already, heated debate over immigration reform. While the solutions proposed by the Obama administration and by a group of bipartisan lawmakers from Texas each address the process by which each refugee’s immigration…

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Family Of Teen Shot On Mexican Side Of The Border Can Sue Agent

, Posted in Immigration Law

A Mexican teen who was fatally shot by a U.S. Border Patrol agent on the Mexican side of the border had some constitutional protections although he was not an American citizen and he was killed on Mexican territory, albeit just across the border. Accordingly, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in Hernandez v. Mesa, No. 11-50792 (5th Cir. 2014) held that the child’s family could sue for wrongful death on the grounds that the decedent’s  Fifth Amendment due…

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Recent Guardianship Case Illustrates Plight Of Kids From Central America

, Posted in Immigration Law

As thousands of children - many unaccompanied by adults - cross America’s southern border to flee danger in countries such as El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, a recent appellate case originating out  of a family court in Nassau County, New York  illustrates the plight facing some of the youngsters in the region. The appeal involves whether the mother of children who fled violence in El Salvador can be appointed guardian under a statute which could eventually…

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Prior Sham Marriage Can Jeopardize Later Bid For Residence

, Posted in Immigration Law

A Lebanese man came to the United States lawfully in 1999 under a H-1(b) work visa to work for his sponsoring employer, Carolyn Pickett. Subsequently the man, Elias Eid, married Ms. Pickett and lived together. But when, after Ms. Pickett and Mr. Eid filed the applications for him to be granted permanent residence in the United States, they withdrew the applications after immigration officers questioned the legitimacy of the marriage. Both Eid and Pickett then gave…

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Independence Day Brings Naturalization Ceremonies Across The Country

, Posted in Immigration Law

For thousands of immigrants who soon will be able to call themselves “American citizens this Fourth of July will be remembered as the time in which they finally achieved that vaunted and highly desired status. After months, and in many cases, years of awaiting action on petitions, submitting to interviews by immigration officials, hoping to hear good news from their attorneys and studying to take the examination necessary to become a citizen in this country, scores…

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Avenue For President To Issue Orders Reducing Deportations Arises

, Posted in Immigration Law

Political leaders in Washington have apparently slammed the door on any chance for achieving comprehensive immigration reform in 2014.  Last week John Boehner, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, reiterated to the President that the House would not be passing an immigration reform bill because he does not believe the President was “faithfully executing the laws. The Speaker does not view the record number of deportations as proof that President Obama will enforce the laws…

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U.S. To Provide Legal Counsel To Kids Found Crossing The Border

, Posted in Immigration Law

The Obama administration announced a plan last week to establish a program to provide legal counsel to the children who have recently crossed over the southern border of this country. Over 47,000 children have fled their home countries of Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador, at their parents’ behest to avoid the persecution facing residents in those Central American countries. When they arrive across our border, few can speak English, most have not bathed in days or…

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