Although the Government of President Joe Biden has a priority guide on the detention of undocumented immigrants, the Office of Immigration and Customs Control (ICE) reinforces its campaign to prevent the immigration of people without papers.
ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO) office is responsible for enforcing deportation orders and, according to guidelines recently endorsed by the Supreme Court, people who entered the US after November 1, 2020 will be subject to removal.
“Non-citizens should use legal pathways instead of trying to cross the border illegally,” the agency says,
He warns that ICE is ready to apply the immigration laws of the country, although he presumes that it will do so in a “humane” way.
“Crossing into the United States illegally has consequences, such as deportation, persecution, and a ban on re-entry for several years,” recalls the agency.
In the first half of fiscal year 2023 – which began in October 2022 – the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) increased deportations and expulsions to 225,483 people, compared to 170,896 in the same period the previous year.
Of the almost 66,000 removals, 48,381 were carried out through flights coordinated by ICE, in addition to almost 1,100,000 Title 42 removals from the border with Mexico, carried out by the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) office.
“With the end of the Title 42 public health order, DHS and ICE will continue to enforce US immigration laws with a return to expedited removal proceedings under Title 8 authorities,” the agency recalled. “[Eso] carries stricter consequences, such as a minimum five-year ban on re-entry and possible criminal prosecution for illegal re-entry.”
ICE reminds that those with a final deportation order will be sent to their countries “immediately”, due to new agreements with several countries to accept more return flights.
The deportation guides of September 2021 endorsed by the Supreme Court allow immigration agents to discretionally apply their criteria, in order not to prosecute an immigrant solely for being undocumented, but the guidelines do not contemplate people who entered irregularly as of November 1, 2020.
hard to get out of prison
Immigrants who are detained by ICE now face increased difficulties to continue their legal process in freedomaccording to a new report from the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) at Syracuse University in New York.
The percentage of undocumented immigrants who are granted bond has dropped to 31 percent in the Joe Biden government, when 56 percent of cases were reported in the Barack Obama administration and 46 percent under former President Donald Trump.
Immigrants who are granted bail may face payments of up to more than $25,000, depending on the case.
The undocumented at risk of removal
According to DHS guidelines, ICE agents can pursue, detain, and process for deportation the following types of undocumented immigrants:
1. If the immigrant represents a threat to national securitythat is, being suspected of terrorism or espionage.
2. If the person can be a threat to public safetythat is, those people with a criminal record, especially serious crimes.
3. If the immigrant is a border security threat.
4. If said person entered the US on or after November 1, 2020.
Keep reading:
• What are the undocumented immigrants who face the risk of deportation from ICE despite the Supreme Court ruling?
• ICE detains immigrants without criminal records, despite not being a priority, warns report
• DHS announces new rules for ICE and CBP agents on body-worn video cameras