A
recent New Yorker article
tells the story of Sergio Perez, who initially entered the U.S. without
authorization at the age of 19. Perez had moved back and forth to Mexico
several times, and also had been deported several times, but reentered
the country in order to stay with his U.S. citizen wife and three children,
but had never been convicted of another crime, except a ticket for driving
on a suspended license. Out of concern for his children, who were living
with his estranged wife and her boyfriend, whom his wife had accused of
domestic violence in the past, he sought full custody of the children
in family court. When he appeared in court, however, Immigration and Customs
Enforcement (ICE) agents immediately detained him in a jail in Dearborn,
MI, and soon transferred him to a Louisiana detention center. Despite
efforts by attorneys from the Michigan chapter of the American Civil Liberties
Union (ACLU), Perez was deported to Mexico. This example illustrates one
of the major problems with the enforcement of federal immigration laws
within the interior of the U.S. Unlike criminal defendants, immigrant
detainees do not enjoy the full range of constitutional rights given to
all criminal defendants, regardless of their immigration status. Rather,
immigration proceedings are civil in nature, which means that detainees
have no right to an attorney in their deportation proceedings, warranted
used by ICE to arrest immigrants are not issued by a judge, but merely
by an ICE office supervisor, and 4
th
Amendment protections against unreasonable search and seizure often don’t
apply, either. Now that the Trump administration is apparently advocating
the detention of immigrants in courthouses nationwide, these troubling
issues have only worsened. As a result, immigrants who are attempting
to access necessary legal services in family court, or seeking protection
from domestic violence, often find themselves caught up in immigration
enforcement efforts.
Landerholm Immigration, A.P.C., has the experience that you need when you are facing deportation charges.
We know how to gather the facts that are relevant to your case, assess
your options, and determine whether you have any legal defenses that may
enable you to avoid deportation and remain in the U.S. Contact the Oakland
immigration attorneys at our office today and learn how we potentially
can help you and your family through this difficult situation.
Categories:
As of February 2021, we are open again and accepting in-office consultations.
If you want to know more about the Biden's Proposed Immigration Reform, watch our video!