Exclusive: Immigration judges headed to 12 U.S. cities to speed deportations
Exclusive: Immigration judges headed to 12 U.S. cities to speed deportations
http://www.politicususa.com/2017/03/18/exclusive-immigration-judges-headed-12-u-s-cities-speed-deportations.html
By Reuters on Sat, Mar 18th, 2017 at 6:05 pm
The U.S. Justice Department is developing plans to temporarily reassign immigration judges from around the country to 12 cities to speed up deportations of illegal immigrants who have been charged with crimes, according to two administration officials.
By Julia Edwards Ainsley
WASHINGTON (Reuters) ....................................
The targeted cities are New York; Los Angeles; Miami; New Orleans; San Francisco; Baltimore, Bloomington, Minnesota; El Paso, Texas; Harlingen, Texas; Imperial, California; Omaha, Nebraska and Phoenix, Arizona. They were chosen because they are cities which have high populations of illegal immigrants with criminal charges, the officials said.
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The Department of Homeland Security asked for the judges reshuffle, an unusual move given that immigration courts are administered by the Department of Justice. A Homeland Security spokeswoman declined to comment on any plan that has not yet been finalized.
Under an executive order signed by Trump in January, illegal immigrants with pending criminal cases are regarded as priorities for deportation whether they have been found guilty or not.
That is a departure from former President Barack Obamas policy, which prioritized deportations only of those convicted of serious crimes.
The policy shift has been criticized by advocate groups who say it unfairly targets immigrants who might ultimately be acquitted and do not pose a threat.........................