Incoming Harvard Freshman Turned Away from Entering by U.S. Customs And Border Protection

Harvard Freshman Turned Away from entering the by U.S. CBP
Sep27

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq. Throughout the country, many young adults are excitedly commencing their college years as freshmen.  For those attending top-ranked schools, such as Harvard University, this excitement is probably even greater.  However, in at least one case, U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has turned this excitement into disappointment, as on August 23, incoming Harvard freshman Ismail B. Ajjawi was turned away from entering the United States by CBP. Ajjawi is a 17-year old Palestinian resident of Tyre, Lebanon.  He arrived at Boston’s Logan International Airport as an accepted member of

September 27, 2019
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Trump Administration Announces Final “Public Charge” Rule Which Can Materially Reduce Legal Immigration

Legal Immigration Reduced Materially by “Public Charge” Rule
Sep26

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq. Much has been written about the impact of the anti-immigration policies of the Trump administration regarding undocumented immigrants.  However, it appears that the Trump administration is now seeking also to attack legal immigration. On August 12, the Trump administration announced a final “public charge” rule which can materially reduce legal immigration. Finalizing proposed regulations that were issued on October 10, 2018 (and received more than 260,000 public comments), this final “public charge” rule (published in the Federal Register on August 14) amends U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) regulations

September 26, 2019
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Federal Courts Issue Different Rulings on Trump Administration’s Effort to Significantly Restrict Asylum Protection

Trump Efforts to Restrict Asylum Protection Significantly
Sep24

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq. The Federal judiciary has frequently been relied on to block the anti-immigration policies of the Trump administration.  However, as with any litigation, there is no guarantee as to how any Federal judge will rule on any specific immigration law issue.  This point was made abundantly clear on July 24 when 2 Federal courts issued different rulings on the Trump administration’s effort to significantly restrict asylum protection for migrants. These 2 cases involved lawsuits against the new rule of the Trump administration (published in the Federal Register to be effective July

September 24, 2019
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Trump Administration Announces Expanded “Expedited Removal” Deportation Authority

Trump Deportation Authority “Expedited Removal” Expanded
Sep23

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq. Probably the major limitation on the anti-immigration policies of the Trump administration has been decisions by the Federal judiciary to overturn certain of these policies in court cases.  Therefore, it is not surprising that the Trump administration would try to restrict the ability of judges to review immigration cases. Specifically, on July 22, the Trump administration announced that it will expand its “expedited removal” deportation authority – the ability of immigration officers to deport migrants without them appearing before judges. In an executive order in January 2017, President Trump directed

September 23, 2019
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New Study Shows ICE is Not Targeting Serious Criminals

New Study Shows ICE is Not Targeting Serious Criminals
Sep22

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq. In defending his immigration policies, President Trump often argues that his purpose is to deport “criminals” (“bad hombres”) from the United States.  Notwithstanding this rhetoric, a new study reveals a different result. The study, from Syracuse University’s Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), released on July 19, shows that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is in fact not targeting serious criminals. The TRAC study states that “the latest data from the Immigration Courts through June 2019 shows only 2.8 percent of recent Department of Homeland Security (DHS)

September 22, 2019
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Michigan Us District Court Judge Allows New Litigation Challenging Trump’s Travel Ban to Proceed

Judge Allows New Litigation Challenging Trump’s Travel Ban
Sep20

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq. While the Federal judiciary has generally protected immigrant rights against the policies of the Trump administration, one exception was the decision by the Supreme Court in the case of Trump v. Hawaii, 138 S. Ct. 2392 (2018), which upheld the validity of President Trump’s travel ban.  However, at least one Federal judge may be reconsidering the issue. In the case of Arab American Civil Rights League v. Trump, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 114273 (E.D. Mich. 2019), on July 10, Michigan US District

September 20, 2019
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New Eb-5 Regulations Near Publication May Significantly Modify Eb-5 Requirements

New Eb-5 Regulations May Modify Eb-5 Requirements
Sep11

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq. The EB-5 program has been a popular vehicle for immigrant investors to obtain green cards, and status as a permanent lawful resident, in the United States.  Under the EB-5 program, by investing $500,000 in a project located in a “targeted employment area” (generally rural areas and areas with high levels of unemployment) (“TEA”) that creates 10 full-time jobs, the immigrant investor generally can obtain a green card.  Persons interested in the EB-5 program should note that new regulations are near publication that may significantly modify the requirements of the

September 11, 2019
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Supreme Court At Least Temporarily Blocks Trump Administration from Adding Citizenship Question To The 2020 Census

Supreme Court Blocks Citizenship Question on 2020 Census
Sep06

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq. On any number of issues affecting immigrants, the Federal judiciary has blocked anti-immigration efforts by the Trump administration.  Generally, these actions by Federal judges have come at the District Court and Court of Appeals levels. However, on June 27, the Supreme Court also acted against an anti-immigration policy of the Trump administration, at least temporarily blocking it from adding a citizenship question to the 2020 census. The case (Department of Commerce v. New York, Docket No. 18-966) arose from the decision in March, 2018 by

September 6, 2019
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Illinois Becomes First State to Ban Private Immigration Detention Centers

Illinois to Ban Private Immigration Detention Centers
Sep02

Written by: Taher Kameli It has been said that in the face of Congress’ general inability to reach an agreement on immigration issues, and President Trump’s anti-immigration policies, only the judicial branch of government appears to be available to protect immigrant rights. However, such a statement ignores another part of our overall government system – the states. That the states can support immigrant rights was evidenced on June 21 when Illinois Governor JB Pritzker signed a bill under which Illinois became the first state to ban private immigration detention centers. The bill, HB 2040 (the “Private Detention

September 2, 2019
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President Trump Threatens to Deport “Millions of Illegal Aliens”

Trump Threatens to Deport "Millions of Illegal Aliens"
Aug30

Written by: Taher Kameli, Esq. President Trump is very good at talking tough on immigration issues.  However, his ability to actually implement anti-immigration policies has often been impeded by judicial opposition, practical limitations, and poor timing.  Such practical limitations and poor timing again may be obstacles with respect to the “tweet” by President Trump on June 17 that threatens to deport “millions of illegal aliens”. President Trump specifically “tweeted”, “Next week ICE [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement] will begin the process of removing the millions of illegal aliens who have illicitly found their way

August 30, 2019
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