"The Cuban asylum seeker referred to in court papers as EC could not believe his luck, and neither could his lawyers. They had come to immigration court in Miami in late spring expecting only incremental progress in a case that had been grinding away for more than three years. Yet here was the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) lawyer telling the judge the government was dropping its deportation demands. It seemed EC had won, eligible at last for a green card."
"The DHS had issued guidance to its attorneys to look for cases that could be dismissed not because the government intended to relax its hardline stance on deportations but rather the opposite. The Trump administration was looking to short-circuit the normal judicial procedure and make it easier to arrest, detain and deport migrants by taking them out of the jurisdiction of the court system and reclassifying them as emergency cases requiring immediate enforcement action. In other words, down was suddenly up,"
An asylum seeker identified as EC approached Miami immigration court expecting incremental progress in a three-year case. A DHS lawyer told the judge the government was dropping deportation demands and the judge granted dismissal, signaling eligibility for a green card. Unknown to EC's team, DHS had issued guidance instructing attorneys to identify cases to dismiss so they could be reclassified as emergencies, enabling immediate enforcement. ICE agents arrested EC outside the courtroom. Lawyers allege the government misled the court and deliberately short-circuited judicial procedures to remove cases from court jurisdiction and expedite arrests, detentions and deportations.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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