Immigration judges, appointed by the U.S. attorney general, are not authorized to speak on the record about cases. You really get those Perry Mason moments in immigration court. (She also refers to herself as a sit-down comedian.), Attorneys who appeared before Judge Marks were impressed by her complete command of her courtroom. Unaware of each others plight, both fled with their children, making the dangerous trek across Mexico. Updated 10:55 AM EDT, Wed July 1, 2020 Link Copied! Immigration judges in New York and San Francisco stayed home from work Tuesday, and their union announced a judge in Denver had COVID-19 symptoms and an Atlanta attorney tested positive. Well-established law recognizes family as a protected social group, according to the Center for Gender & Refugee Studies. Chinese nationals won asylum almost 77% of the time in 2020, followed by people from India (62%), Cameroon (61.6%), and Venezuela (54.3%). These are life or death matters. She quickly packed some backpacks for her and her children and called the only friend she knew who had a car. I am not going to risk my childs life. . She first interviewed Judge Marks, then-president of NAIJ, for, Understanding the Crisis in Our Immigration Courts, Legal Alliance for Reproductive Rights (LARR), SF-Marin Lawyer Referral and Information Service. Filed December 16, 2020 . But theyre not holding their breath. San Francisco, CA. We bought a bus pass to go to Guatemala and from Guatemala to Mexico and to the U.S.-Mexico border, according to her court testimony. Two officials in uniforms picked them up. He jokes he decided to hire her the minute she insisted on paying her own fare. Michael Short / Special to The Chronicle 2019. It also excluded cases in which the immigrant did not appear in court, which nearly always end in a deportation order, and cases terminated without a decision or closed at the request of a prosecutor. From 2013-2018, she worked as an immigration attorney. STEP 2: Apply for Asylum STEP 3: Fingerprinting and Background/Security Checks STEP 4: Receive an Interview Notice STEP 5: Interview STEP 6: Asylum Officer Makes Determination on Eligibility and Supervisory Asylum Officer Reviews the Decision STEP 7: Receive Decision Related Links Close All Open All Last Reviewed/Updated: People show up in our office (and) they have no idea why someone wants to kill them. Gutierrez said that was when she first learned that her fellow parent-teacher association board member had been threatened and had fled from home. Were all humans. The Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA)andAntiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act (AEDPA)of 1996, as well as theREAL ID Act of 2005, had serious impacts on asylum cases and the parameters of the courts. Having come from a country with one of the highest murder rates in the world may have helped establish credible fear. But the two women were already at a disadvantage precisely because they came from Honduras. The journey took three weeks. Scott Bratton, president of AILA-Ohio, did not wish to comment on the complaint. They were elected in 2013 to the board of the parent-teacher association at their children's school in the Honduran capital, Tegucigalpa. Through her lawyers, she asked that her full name not be used because of her uncertain status and her fear that Honduran gangs could find her. Hon. John W. Richardson, Immigration Judge, Phoenix, 1990-2018. . Another 35% ended with additional counseling or training of the judge involved. By MICA ROSENBERG, READE LEVINSON and RYAN McNEILL. The October announcement explained that " [s]ince Jan. 20, 2017, the [Department of Justice] has increased EOIR's immigration judge corps from 306 to 520 adjudicators an increase of nearly 70 percent." That statement is misogynistic and very shocking to me.. Additionally, the coalition is calling on the community to help hold San Francisco Immigration Court accountable. However, the women said their reasons for seeking asylum were the same: Gangs had targeted them because of their involvement in the parent-teacher association, and for that, they and their families had been threatened. Constanza Hevia H. / Special to The Chronicle 2020 Diocesan Migrant and Refugee Services officials say the money will be used to try to win cases for migrants in an El Paso facility with 26 confirmed COVID-19 cases as of October. The San Francisco Immigration Court fast-tracked cases of immigrants who weren't getting their mail. Throughout, Jamil says, Judge Marks articulated to the press and to the public the stress of doing the job of immigration judge. STEP 1: Arrive in the U.S. Both were taken into custody near Hidalgo, Texas, and ended up finding each other in the same U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention center in Artesia, New Mexico. Do you know the people? Despite having no immigration law experience, Ford was appointed as a San Francisco Immigration Judge by Attorney General William Barr in 2019 after retiring from his judgeship in Cook County, Illinois. She is known for her compassion and fairmindedness. Holyoak was convinced. Its not that she is lying. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in April that the Justice Department planned to hire more than 50 judges this year and 75 in 2018, which would put the total number of sitting judges above 400. The 43-year-old father of three from Mexico,who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation, had already gone through three hours-long hearings for his application to obtain permanent residency. In the fall of 2020, Juan had trouble falling asleep whenever he thought about his upcoming court appearance in Cleveland, where the only immigration court in Ohio is located. The union representing immigration judges is suing the Trump administration over a policy they say censors judges. Instead of submitting a complaint against Owen, however, the immigration attorney opted to voice his concerns in an appeal, which is currently pending. The advocates testified that, while asylum is granted in nearly half of cases nationwide, Charlotte judges granted asylum in just 13 percent of cases in 2015. 200 After graduating law school at age 23, Judge Marks went into private practice at Simmons & Ungar. As a result, credibility is really the key factor. Riley stopped hearing cases for a few weeks in July and August, but returned shortly after, according to hearing schedules shared with the Dispatch. James Roder, the court administrator at the Cleveland Immigration Court, declined to offer a response. Gutierrez told Reuters that during her final hearing, the judge apologized for asking so many questions about what had been a painful time in her life, explaining that he had needed to establish her credibility. But we have to address these bad judges.. They speak of a woman who broke through barriers, applied the law fairly and compassionately, fought hard fights, and inspired others to join her. The Executive Office for Immigration Review had 2,383 employees in 2015 with an average pay (base salary + bonus) of $118,095.97. ), In a wish list of immigration proposals sent to Congress on Oct. 8, the White House said that lax legal standards had led to the immigration court backlog and that misguided judicial decisions have prevented the removal of numerous criminal aliens, while also rendering those aliens eligible to apply for asylum. Among the proposals offered in exchange for a deal with Congress on the roughly 800,000 dreamers children brought to the country illegally by their parents the Trump administration said it wanted to hire even more immigration judges and 1,000 ICE attorneys, while establishing performance metrics for Immigration Judges.. She can look back with satisfaction at the mass of people whose lives she helped, says Ungar. Are they also Mexicans? Riley said, as shown incourt transcripts cited in a complaint filed later. Gutierrez moved with her boys to Oakland, California, to join her husband, and petitioned to have her case moved to San Francisco. National Lawyers Guild - San Francisco Bay Area, Black Alliance for Just Immigration (BAJI), California Collaborative for Immigrant Justice (CCIJ), Bay Area Asylum Support Coalition (BAASC), Dolores Street Community Services, Deportation Defense and Legal Advocacy Project, Democratic Socialists of America San Francisco Chapter, Collective Action For Laborers, Migrants & Asylum Seekers (CALMA), San Francisco Immigrant Legal and Education Network (SFILEN). Litigating before the US Supreme Courtand winningmight be the pinnacle of many legal careers, but Judge Marks was not one to sit on her laurels. Gail Montenegro, EOIRs Midwest regional public information officer, declined to comment on the allegations against Riley but said the agency has a well-established process for handling complaints against immigration judges. The judge also questioned why, in an early interview with an asylum officer, Ana never mentioned threats to the parent-teacher association, and instead said she thought the gangs were targeting her for the money her daughters father was sending from the United States to build a house in Honduras. A 1996 law expanded the definition of political refugees to include people who are forced to abort a child or undergo sterilization, allowing Chinese women to claim persecution under Beijings coercive birth-control policies. Some of those asylum seekers told Border Report recently they hope their chances will improve once Joe Biden takes over the White House. Three led to oral counseling. Within each court, cases are assigned to judges on a random, rotational basis. With these new judges and along with significant court policy changes, the asylum denial rate increased from 54.6% in fiscal year 2016 to 71.6% in fiscal year 2020. The new lawyers argued that her previous representation had been ineffective. Former immigration judge Rebecca Jamil in Fremont, California, on Dec. 28, 2018. So far, it hasn't. Likewise, the Biden administration last month said it would seek a 21 percent increase to the budget for immigration courts, good enough to hire 100 new immigration judges to begin to ease the courts' massive backlog. The Immigration Justice Program periodically runs legal education events (CLEs) and know-your-rights trainings for lawyers, legal workers, immigrant community members, and other allies and advocates. How do I know this? Ana moved with her daughter to live with her daughters father and petitioned to have her case moved to Charlotte. The longer a judge has been serving, the more likely that judge is to grant asylum. Mattingly, the EOIR spokeswoman, said the agency takes seriously any claims of unjustified and significant anomalies in immigration judge decision-making and takes steps to evaluate disparities in immigration adjudications.. They must convince the court that they have well-founded fears of persecution in their country because of their race, religion, nationality, political opinions or membership in a particular social group. She deeply cared about due process, says Ugarte. Im trying to figure out if youre telling the truth., I felt really bad when I heard the judge call us 'illegals,' Juan, a resident on Columbus' Southwest Side, said in Spanish through an interpreter. Many of the migrants, including Gutierrez and Ana, convinced initial interviewers that they had a credible fear of returning home, the first step in filing an asylum claim. A grant from El Paso Bar Foundation provides an additional $3,700 for the agencys Removal Defense unit. When Theodore Murphy, a former ICE prosecutor who now represents immigrants, has a client in a jurisdiction with a high deportation rate but near one with a lower rate, I tell them to move, he said. Additional reporting by Gustavo Palencia and Kristina Cooke, By Mica Rosenberg in Oakland, California, and Reade Levinson and Ryan McNeill in New York, with additional reporting by Gustavo Palencia in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, and Kristina Cooke in San Francisco, Photo editing: Steve McKinley and Barbara Adhiya, Edited by Sue Horton, Janet Roberts and John Blanton. Immigration Court. In a three-page ruling, one board member said Anas lawyer could not introduce a new argument on appeal and agreed with Couch that Ana hadnt proved a political motive behind the gang members attack. The courts facedand continue to grapple witha crisis of backlogged cases. Cynthia M. Nunez, Immigration Judge, San Francisco Immigration Court Cynthia M. Nunez was appointed as an Immigration Judge to begin hearing cases in May 2022. She was the first person I knew from our side, says Bette Stockton, who later joined Judge Marks on the bench and retired after 21.5 years as an immigration judge. I opened the first file, and there was a picture of the first respondent, probably less than a year old. From 2015 to 2022, she was the Associate She helped create an inspiring model for how courtscanbe, says Ugarte, and Judge Webber states, simply, She inspires people all the time., While she has had some limelight in her career, the vast majority of her work has been thankless, says Judge King. The number of immigration judges Biden appoints will also affect the immigration court backlog, currently at 1.3 million cases. They said, Were going to kill themembers of the parent-teacher association to get them out of here. So the women fled.. With Riley, it felt like she just wanted me out. Circuit Court of Appeals on Tuesday blasted its immigration. Click here for the news release. 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW 950 Pennsylvania Avenue NW. Early in 2020, the immigration case backlog eclipsed 1 million, and the San Francisco court handles the second largest load in the country, roughly 70,000 cases. Even so, the Reuters analysis determined that after controlling for such factors, who hears a case and where it is heard remain reliable predictors of how a case will be decided. You really get those Perry Mason moments in immigration court. I really enjoyed working with journalists and legislators. She also describes her stint as NAIJs president as an incredible blessing because it allowed her to become friendly with immigration judges across the country. It has also been politically charged, as immigration courts fall under the jurisdiction of theUS Department of Justice (DOJ), Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR). Im not judging whether you employed illegals. I didnt have to scare or browbeat people into my decisions, says Judge Marks. They drove all night to her friends mothers house in another town. Cases that claim opposition to gangs as a protected political opinion, the center says, have generated fewer precedent-setting decisions, making that argument a more difficult one to win in court, though it has prevailed in some cases. May 19, 2021. Individuals can sign up for a court watch training at bit.ly/courtwatch1. The mission of BorderReport.com is to provide real-time delivery of the untold local stories about people living, working and migrating along the U.S. border with Mexico. Having legal representation increases the chances of winning an asylum case five-fold, said Melissa M. Lopez, executive director of the El Paso-based nonprofit. Hanrahan's last day as assistant chief immigration judge was May 7, capping a 14-month tenure as the top manager overseeing the 25 immigration judges and dozens of staff at the San Francisco court. These are life or death matters. We were the brave ones. They were eventually transferred to the ICE detention center in Artesia. Your donation to match our RFA grant helps keep her writing stories like this one. Throughout, Jamil says, Judge Marks articulated to the press and to the public the stress of doing the job of immigration judge. The court used to have only three judges, all of whom have since left their posts. She was very vocal as head of NAIJ, says Atkinson, especially [on issues] related to fairness and due process. Judge Webber appreciated Judge Markss talents as a spokesperson for the union, remarking on her great voice and quick thinking. It is unclear why the judge was absent. The other women in the center told me that there was someone else from Honduras who I might know, but I wasnt sure who they were talking about, Gutierrez said. The Reuters analysis used data from the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR), the U.S. Justice Department unit that oversees immigration courts. He was invested on November 6 and will begin hearing cases this month. The Government Accountability Office studied some proposals for reform in 2017, without endorsing any particular model. I love the Wild West aspect of it.. Two of them grabbed Ana and her daughter, pinned their wrists behind their backs, and pointed a gun at the childs head. In 2018, after then-attorney general Jeff Sessions announced new restrictions on asylum cases, there was a mass exodus of immigration judges. I can think of one case I had in front of her, says Ilyce Shugall, a former immigration judge who is currently managing attorney with Immigrant Legal Defense. Argued and Submitted November 20, 2020 . About half the cases in the analysis were filed by asylum seekers like the two Honduran women. She was our fearless leader in the union, says Judge King, who was Union site representative in San Francisco while Judge Marks was president. There they piled with another group of migrants into an inflatable raft and crossed the Rio Grande, the border between Mexico and the United States. Further, Knox said, asylum seekers arent thinking about the finer points of U.S. asylum law when they are fleeing persecution. In New York City, 24 percent do. By the time she retired fromSan Franciscos Immigration Courton December 31, 2021, Judge Dana Leigh Marks* had built an inspiring reputation as a leader, mentor, and advocate. Jamil adds Judge Markss tireless work for the union and giving a professional, female voice to immigration judges to her list of accomplishments. The average annual salary for Immigration Judges in the US is $121,299. Individuals and organizations are encouraged to sign on to a public letter (bit.ly/removeford or bit.ly/fueraford) making the same request of EOIR and the DOJ. U.S. immigration courts are administrative courts within the Department of Justices Executive Office for Immigration Review. She explains things well. Four judges in Atlanta turned down 98 out of 100 asylum claims presented to them; nine judges in Houston said no 95% of the time. Anas response to Couchs extensive questioning played a part in the decision. One evening in April 2014, Gutierrez was watching television at home with her two sons, ages 5 and 11, when she heard banging at the front door. All of the new immigration judges discussed in this post were selected by former Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker. Close to half the complaints were dismissed. In October 2020, when he received a notice from the Cleveland Immigration Court that the asylum case of one ofhis clientswas denied, he was disturbed by the language that Judge Jonathan Owens used in the decision. Jan. 27, 2020 4 AM PT HOUSTON Immigration Judge Charles Honeyman was nearing retirement, but he vowed not to leave while Donald Trump was president and risk being replaced by an ideologue. FY 2015-2020. The situation in our country is getting worse and worse.. Because these complaints rarely generate substantial disciplinary actions and there isa fear of retaliation from the judges, immigration attorneys and their clients often hesitate toreport misconducts, said Austin Kocher, a research associate professor at the Transactional RecordsAccess Clearinghouse (TRAC), a research instituteat Syracuse University. 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