The Biden administration’s new removal (deportation) guidelines ask the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) attorneys to exercise prosecutorial discretion in their approach to the record backlog of nearly 1.8 million removal cases pending before the immigration courts. By focusing on high-priority cases (noncitizens who present a threat to national security or public safety, or who recently crossed the U.S. border without authorization), ICE attorneys should terminate many non-priority cases. Prosecutorial discretion is a common tool used by prosecutors in criminal courts (plea bargains, etc.) to avoid unnecessary court backlogs. If properly implemented, the new prosecutorial discretion practices could relieve some of the strain on this already overburdened court system that normally handles between 200,000 to 400,000 cases a year. This would speed final resolution of priority cases; bringing faster removal for those found deportable and quicker protection for those who qualify.
How the New ICE Guidelines
Effect the Immigration Court System
Por / By Robert Fuchs, Esq.
Pending Cases in U.S. Immigration Court, FY 2008-22
Casos Pendientes en la Corte de Inmigración de los Estados Unidos, Año fiscal 2008-2022