LookingForGC
05-10 10:11 AM
The best is yet to come my friends
ca_immigrant
01-16 07:57 PM
Folks, there is thought that keeps coming to mind about where to go back in India when we finally plan to...
When we came in 2002 we did think that we will go back in a couple of years at the most....but it's been longer...we definately love it hear but think that should settle down in India rather for multiple reasons (mostly personal reasons)
I am from a small town in India and it is definately not a IT hub, my wife is from Mumbai and we think it is now too crowded (as always -:) or say to hectiv a life in Mumbai....
so then which is the best place to go ...Pune ? I hear that even that is very crowded and not to mention the sky rocketing real estate....
We have 2 kids...one 6 years and the younger one ...one year....
How is schooling back home ? I hear that the studies for the school there are much more difficult compared to here ? I mean can kids going from here cope up there in schools ?
I also hear that there are foreign schools....for which I might have to continue working here to pay the fees -;)
Thoughts friends ?
I am in the software industry (Business Inteligence)
When we came in 2002 we did think that we will go back in a couple of years at the most....but it's been longer...we definately love it hear but think that should settle down in India rather for multiple reasons (mostly personal reasons)
I am from a small town in India and it is definately not a IT hub, my wife is from Mumbai and we think it is now too crowded (as always -:) or say to hectiv a life in Mumbai....
so then which is the best place to go ...Pune ? I hear that even that is very crowded and not to mention the sky rocketing real estate....
We have 2 kids...one 6 years and the younger one ...one year....
How is schooling back home ? I hear that the studies for the school there are much more difficult compared to here ? I mean can kids going from here cope up there in schools ?
I also hear that there are foreign schools....for which I might have to continue working here to pay the fees -;)
Thoughts friends ?
I am in the software industry (Business Inteligence)
div_bell_2003
03-04 08:09 PM
Interesting link, thanks for posting :) , if this is true , how come IO's come up with blank when asked if the namecheck has been cleared or not ? This might actually be good news , according to the memo, they are going to clear out 98% of the namecheck cases pending more than 30 days, that's pretty amazing ( as they declare too at the end of the memo :D)
It could be because there are no lnger any cases left with namechecks pending more than 180 days. See link http://www.uscis.gov/files/article/Namecheck_4Mar09.pdf
It could be because there are no lnger any cases left with namechecks pending more than 180 days. See link http://www.uscis.gov/files/article/Namecheck_4Mar09.pdf
GCBy3000
07-22 03:46 PM
Too early for this thread. Only you could see NO. Is there anyway to create a poll to change from No to YES when the checks are cleared. Then this will be useful, otherwise it is going to be a waste thread in next two days.
more...
jasmin45
08-06 10:23 AM
Hello everyone,new to the forum
Anyway,filed i-485 in 1997 and was interview 1999 and stamp in passport adjustment status pending,b;cos of past immigration issues.Then i did recieve letter that my family petition was accepted then two weeks recieved another letter stated my application was denial due to my past issues so i had to leave the country and reapply. My lawyer said she had to file a motion,did charge alot of money.Did not hear anything till i went there to check my status and the officer told me i was in the process of deportation,so she gave me the date.So i went to my lawyer to check if she knew anything and she said your case is pending,so i ask her if she can call and check whereby she did and find out i was in the processes of deportation,now she told she need more money and if i do not pay that amount she can not go the court with me,so i did offer some amount and she refuse.
So i went to the immigration court and i did win the case,and now she find out that i did win the case so trying to be my attorney.
I do need to file for Ead because my old one was revorke,do i have to file for another i-485 or not?Another thing my lawyer had my file how do i track my old receipt number.Can someone please help me, i do have the original judgement from the immigration court
I guess you should drop all "thing in the past" with your lawyer behind and work with her to get you going with this. you lawyer is the one in best position to help your situation. If you do not have receipt for 485, you should talk to her and ensure that the lawyer agree to send you all the photocopies of the documents or the originals themselves so that you do not land up in this sutiation again. Pay her after you receive the documents.
Anyway,filed i-485 in 1997 and was interview 1999 and stamp in passport adjustment status pending,b;cos of past immigration issues.Then i did recieve letter that my family petition was accepted then two weeks recieved another letter stated my application was denial due to my past issues so i had to leave the country and reapply. My lawyer said she had to file a motion,did charge alot of money.Did not hear anything till i went there to check my status and the officer told me i was in the process of deportation,so she gave me the date.So i went to my lawyer to check if she knew anything and she said your case is pending,so i ask her if she can call and check whereby she did and find out i was in the processes of deportation,now she told she need more money and if i do not pay that amount she can not go the court with me,so i did offer some amount and she refuse.
So i went to the immigration court and i did win the case,and now she find out that i did win the case so trying to be my attorney.
I do need to file for Ead because my old one was revorke,do i have to file for another i-485 or not?Another thing my lawyer had my file how do i track my old receipt number.Can someone please help me, i do have the original judgement from the immigration court
I guess you should drop all "thing in the past" with your lawyer behind and work with her to get you going with this. you lawyer is the one in best position to help your situation. If you do not have receipt for 485, you should talk to her and ensure that the lawyer agree to send you all the photocopies of the documents or the originals themselves so that you do not land up in this sutiation again. Pay her after you receive the documents.
lj_rr
07-30 10:24 AM
This is what the FAQ says
"Q5: Where should employment-based adjustment applications be filed?
A5. Forms I-485 may be filed at either the Nebraska Service Center or the Texas Service Center in accordance with the Direct Filing Update issued June 21, 2007."
Though it says Nebraska Service Center or the Texas Service Center there is also an additional clause "Nebraska Service Center or the Texas Service Center in accordance with the Direct Filing Update issued June 21, 2007". ANd according to that update CA residents should file at Nebraska.
This is what is confusing me.
Please see Q5 & Q6:
http://www.uscis.gov/files/pressrelease/EBFAQ1.pdf
Also FAQ2 for your reference:
http://www.uscis.gov/files/pressrelease/FAQ2.pdf
"Q5: Where should employment-based adjustment applications be filed?
A5. Forms I-485 may be filed at either the Nebraska Service Center or the Texas Service Center in accordance with the Direct Filing Update issued June 21, 2007."
Though it says Nebraska Service Center or the Texas Service Center there is also an additional clause "Nebraska Service Center or the Texas Service Center in accordance with the Direct Filing Update issued June 21, 2007". ANd according to that update CA residents should file at Nebraska.
This is what is confusing me.
Please see Q5 & Q6:
http://www.uscis.gov/files/pressrelease/EBFAQ1.pdf
Also FAQ2 for your reference:
http://www.uscis.gov/files/pressrelease/FAQ2.pdf
more...
EndlessWait
04-12 07:12 PM
Considering, if lobbying with $ is how things work here and it will help the govt. to fund the war, I've a great idea.
Tell the lawmakers, we legal H1b highly skilled workers are willing to shell out $10K-$20K, if they can have a provision after I-140 to let us get I-485 Premium Processing. This fee, lets call it Premium processing GC fee, can help government in all the good ways.
Paying this premium processing is giving government funds to support various things namely balance budget, fund the troops in war.
IV should consider this seriously and debate.
Say what???
:-)
Tell the lawmakers, we legal H1b highly skilled workers are willing to shell out $10K-$20K, if they can have a provision after I-140 to let us get I-485 Premium Processing. This fee, lets call it Premium processing GC fee, can help government in all the good ways.
Paying this premium processing is giving government funds to support various things namely balance budget, fund the troops in war.
IV should consider this seriously and debate.
Say what???
:-)
immilaw
12-16 04:02 PM
USCIS refuses to give this data to anybody. They are not willing to give any break up.
Can't you get this information unde FOIA (Freedom of Information Act)?
Can't you get this information unde FOIA (Freedom of Information Act)?
more...
ivar
02-15 12:20 AM
I recently booked tickets for my parents through Travel center NY. Their prices were good and they accept visa, mastercard and amex. Since it was a E-Ticket the ticket is issued only after successful transaction. Let me know if you need more details.
Hi Friends,
I was trying to get online tickets for my parents to come from Chennai to SFO.
..I was planning to pay from here using my credit card...but guess that might not work( see text in italics below from the airline website) , My parent have an icici debit card but that one has a limit from icici for 50,000 Rs or 75,000 Rs or so, the tickets are totally 1 lakh + so trying to figure out what might be the options....
Have the physical credit card originally used for the purchase presented by the cardholder for verification at check-in, OR on collecting the tickets, OR at the nearest Cathay Pacific Ticketing Office prior to the flight departure. The cardholder does not need to book and travel. If a transaction is successfully made with "Verified by Visa", or "MasterCard� SecureCode�", the cardholder will not be required to present the physical card used for verification.
I understand that if the cardholder fails to present the physical card originally used for booking transaction, the carrier reserves the right to -
Deny boarding, or
Collect a guarantee payment (in cash or from a new credit card).
Anyone been able to book from here for tickets starting from India ?
Thanks in Advance !!
Regards,
Hi Friends,
I was trying to get online tickets for my parents to come from Chennai to SFO.
..I was planning to pay from here using my credit card...but guess that might not work( see text in italics below from the airline website) , My parent have an icici debit card but that one has a limit from icici for 50,000 Rs or 75,000 Rs or so, the tickets are totally 1 lakh + so trying to figure out what might be the options....
Have the physical credit card originally used for the purchase presented by the cardholder for verification at check-in, OR on collecting the tickets, OR at the nearest Cathay Pacific Ticketing Office prior to the flight departure. The cardholder does not need to book and travel. If a transaction is successfully made with "Verified by Visa", or "MasterCard� SecureCode�", the cardholder will not be required to present the physical card used for verification.
I understand that if the cardholder fails to present the physical card originally used for booking transaction, the carrier reserves the right to -
Deny boarding, or
Collect a guarantee payment (in cash or from a new credit card).
Anyone been able to book from here for tickets starting from India ?
Thanks in Advance !!
Regards,
rajsoni
05-06 09:18 AM
HI,
Yes, there is no labor substitution.
My case has been filed in July 2007.
Yes, there is no labor substitution.
My case has been filed in July 2007.
more...
Sri_
09-27 03:46 PM
Whoever has already attended FP, did the FP officer ask for 485 receipt also along with FP Notice.
I received FP Notice, but didnot receive receipts. I have the FP appointment tomorrow.
Thanks
I received FP Notice, but didnot receive receipts. I have the FP appointment tomorrow.
Thanks
seahawks
07-25 02:01 AM
I'm a new comer... I would like to contribute if I could...but what's IV?
sorry that I was away the past weekend, thus the late reply
IV stands for immigrationvoice.org a forum where we are all writing, sharing our thoughts and helping in whatever ways we can on helping the confused often lengthy process of getting an employment based green card. Check out the home page and you will get all the information on all the wonderful founders, core members, volunteers and ofcourse all the members in whatever way are trying to help raise awareness on the employment immigration problems that we face and to see if we can get the honorable members of the house and senate understand our pain and bring some bill that will make us see light at the end of the legal line of aliens forever waiting for Green Card:)
sorry that I was away the past weekend, thus the late reply
IV stands for immigrationvoice.org a forum where we are all writing, sharing our thoughts and helping in whatever ways we can on helping the confused often lengthy process of getting an employment based green card. Check out the home page and you will get all the information on all the wonderful founders, core members, volunteers and ofcourse all the members in whatever way are trying to help raise awareness on the employment immigration problems that we face and to see if we can get the honorable members of the house and senate understand our pain and bring some bill that will make us see light at the end of the legal line of aliens forever waiting for Green Card:)
more...
hibworker
03-21 11:29 AM
First round of interviews went well - now have to send my details to their HR to make sure EB2 porting will work.
However, does filing AC21 (same or similar) cause a conflict with EB2 filing in this case? Should they file and get I-140 approved and then only I should join them?
However, does filing AC21 (same or similar) cause a conflict with EB2 filing in this case? : Interesting question - here is my take - if you switch job you'll have to invoke AC21 portability to keep existing application alive. You may choose not to inform USCIS about the change in employment - another grey area.
Should they file and get I-140 approved and then only I should join them? : This may not be a viable option since filing for Labor takes 2 - 3 months (might be a lot quicker in your case as they are already doing the recruiting). Labor approval can take anywhere from 2 weeks to 1+ years and then I-140 prep and filing even in premium processing may take at least a month. Your new employer may not be willing to wait that long.
However, does filing AC21 (same or similar) cause a conflict with EB2 filing in this case? Should they file and get I-140 approved and then only I should join them?
However, does filing AC21 (same or similar) cause a conflict with EB2 filing in this case? : Interesting question - here is my take - if you switch job you'll have to invoke AC21 portability to keep existing application alive. You may choose not to inform USCIS about the change in employment - another grey area.
Should they file and get I-140 approved and then only I should join them? : This may not be a viable option since filing for Labor takes 2 - 3 months (might be a lot quicker in your case as they are already doing the recruiting). Labor approval can take anywhere from 2 weeks to 1+ years and then I-140 prep and filing even in premium processing may take at least a month. Your new employer may not be willing to wait that long.
akilhere
09-02 10:11 AM
I'm just curious as there has been approvals contrary to the bulletins in the years before. Please don't flame me as i'm just looking for any signs of hope around the corner for the EB3 folks.
more...
prem_goel
06-07 02:45 AM
I think it's not wise to leave. I tried googling for h-1b transfer & leaving the country but didn't get much info. I think if a transfer is pending with USCIS then you shouldn't leave the country as it may be considered as abandonment of the application.
i would advice to get it done under premium processing. i am not sure when the i-94 records are updated but if USCIS sees that you left India while the transfer is pending, they might issue you I-797 but with instructions to get it stamped at a consulate in India.
just my thoughts..better try googling or ask some lawyer.
i would advice to get it done under premium processing. i am not sure when the i-94 records are updated but if USCIS sees that you left India while the transfer is pending, they might issue you I-797 but with instructions to get it stamped at a consulate in India.
just my thoughts..better try googling or ask some lawyer.
fromnaija
07-10 12:08 PM
This being your first post on this forum, I'd like to advise that you include URL in your post otherwise one might think you are making this up.
Why AILA not suing State Dept. or USCIS for other issues... read a letter posted by someone in a forum
To AILF/AILA,
I appreciate your effort in filing lawsuit on behalf of July I-485 filers.
There are several critics on your July I-485 lawsuit. They criticize that you are doing for the benefit of your members (AILA). Definitely, your members will be benefited by huge amount of legal fees. Also, the critic says it is waste of time.
Even one of your reputed member (Rajiv Khanna @ immigration.com) posted in his website that chance of winning the law suit is very minimum.
He posted in his website as follows: "Please note folks, I don�t think this class will be easily approved by courts. CIS could argue a lot of things against it, which I don�t wish to publish in an open forum."
Why you cannot sue for the people who struck at Consulate due to administrative process without probable cause.
Several of them working in U.S (they have proof of employment, pay stubs, worked in the U.S on H1B visa for many years) just went to their home country for short vacation and applied for visa; they have rented house in the U.S and unable to break the lease; unable to pay car dues; their U.S citizen children also held overseas; they are loosing their jobs. State department is holding these visa application for more than a year in several cases.
What steps AILA has taken in this issue. If not, why you are not aware of this issue or why you are not giving importance. Do you think this issue will not bring such a huge legal fee like I-485 lawsuit?
Why AILA not suing State Dept. or USCIS for other issues... read a letter posted by someone in a forum
To AILF/AILA,
I appreciate your effort in filing lawsuit on behalf of July I-485 filers.
There are several critics on your July I-485 lawsuit. They criticize that you are doing for the benefit of your members (AILA). Definitely, your members will be benefited by huge amount of legal fees. Also, the critic says it is waste of time.
Even one of your reputed member (Rajiv Khanna @ immigration.com) posted in his website that chance of winning the law suit is very minimum.
He posted in his website as follows: "Please note folks, I don�t think this class will be easily approved by courts. CIS could argue a lot of things against it, which I don�t wish to publish in an open forum."
Why you cannot sue for the people who struck at Consulate due to administrative process without probable cause.
Several of them working in U.S (they have proof of employment, pay stubs, worked in the U.S on H1B visa for many years) just went to their home country for short vacation and applied for visa; they have rented house in the U.S and unable to break the lease; unable to pay car dues; their U.S citizen children also held overseas; they are loosing their jobs. State department is holding these visa application for more than a year in several cases.
What steps AILA has taken in this issue. If not, why you are not aware of this issue or why you are not giving importance. Do you think this issue will not bring such a huge legal fee like I-485 lawsuit?
more...
PresidentO
02-07 12:37 PM
Hi! I am on a H1 - B visa and had a question. If I marry someone from my home country India and she is working out there as a physiotherapist, can she come here and start practicing immediately or she needs to give some exams and do I need to file her H1 - B in the quota opening in April or is she outside the quota?
Please update your profile to reflect your Labor cert/I-140/ I-485 status and I will answer your Q in detail.
Please update your profile to reflect your Labor cert/I-140/ I-485 status and I will answer your Q in detail.
coolpal
02-06 11:34 AM
well... I am definitely not scared. Just wondering if anyone else is in the same situation, or has any useful advice ;)
If you were trying to be funny there, seriously, I didn't get it.
pal :)
If you were trying to be funny there, seriously, I didn't get it.
pal :)
anandrajesh
12-13 12:32 PM
Hi,
I'm in the US working on L1 visa, though I have an expired visa, I have I94 valid until Jun 2008 which makes me legal to work here until Jun 2008. Now, I'm planning to travel to India, Do I need transit visa in France if I travel via france.
Thanks in advance,
Sheshadri
YES. French & British Airport needs a Transit Visa if your Visa Stamping on your passport is expired. If you have a valid 797 approval German airports let you in without a transit visa.
I'm in the US working on L1 visa, though I have an expired visa, I have I94 valid until Jun 2008 which makes me legal to work here until Jun 2008. Now, I'm planning to travel to India, Do I need transit visa in France if I travel via france.
Thanks in advance,
Sheshadri
YES. French & British Airport needs a Transit Visa if your Visa Stamping on your passport is expired. If you have a valid 797 approval German airports let you in without a transit visa.
mrsr
08-03 09:42 PM
Today nebraska issued total 4234 cases which includes all kinds of applications.
last Lin numuber is lin0722554234
:)
last Lin numuber is lin0722554234
:)
Blog Feeds
01-12 07:30 AM
AILA Leadership Has Just Posted the Following:
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9xhwn88fz4kKxlbTMoAkVqroh5JkLqjWJP_mnUWzFpGBPAD-ejB2oOyuhDAocnhoHZOlfN40tvjyKVB7ial0nTYjq83CtmKW-HyPhnzCVGQZK3Dbgh35KI-uf3o1SZ094EvqWi9x-gQo/s320/2010-01-01+ICE+detention+2.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9xhwn88fz4kKxlbTMoAkVqroh5JkLqjWJP_mnUWzFpGBPAD-ejB2oOyuhDAocnhoHZOlfN40tvjyKVB7ial0nTYjq83CtmKW-HyPhnzCVGQZK3Dbgh35KI-uf3o1SZ094EvqWi9x-gQo/s1600-h/2010-01-01+ICE+detention+2.jpg)All Americans should be outraged by the Sunday New York Times report about how ICE officials schemed to cover up the deaths of detainees in detention. http://bit.ly/6p2xlX. The online edition includes a link to a horrifying video of an ICE detainee, Mr. Boubacar Bah, who, after mysteriously suffering a skull fracture, was handcuffed while writhing in agony on the floor in his own vomit, then locked-up in an isolation cell for 13 hours without medical treatment and, finally, transported to a hospital in a coma where he later died.
It would be one thing if death in ICE detention was a rare occurrence. But, unfortunately, it's all too common. In a related article, also published Sunday, the Times reports about other ICE detainee deaths which were the result of substandard medical care and abuse. http://bit.ly/6gJlXu.
As I sat down to write this blog, I hoped to pen a stinging piece expressing my anger and calling for a full overhaul of ICE's detention system, not just more press releases and empty promises. But the New York Times articles speak for themselves �107 people have died in ICE custody since 2003 (not counting the immigrants who were released shortly before death so they wouldn't be added to the tally). Added to my anger is the revulsion that I feel toward an agency that is not only incompetent to care for those it locks up, but whose bureaucrats conspire to avoid paying detainees' medical bills and hide from bad publicity, rather than attend to immigrants in their custody. It seems not one of the faceless ICE bureaucrats is ever called to answer for his or her transgressions. Indeed, participating in the abuse and neglect of ICE detainees may have resume value. Just ask Nina Dozoretz, who was the longtime manager of ICE's Division of Immigration Health Services and Vice President of the Nakamoto Group, a company that, according to the Times, was hired by the Bush administration to monitor ICE detention. Dozoretz reportedly participated in the ICE conference calls where officials debated ways to avoid paying for Boubacar Bah's medical care, and came up with a scheme to shift the costs to his indigent relatives before he died. Shockingly, she was recently hired by the Obama administration to overhaul the ICE detainee healthcare system (I guess I won't hold my breath waiting for positive change I can believe in as it relates to ICE health care).
The abuse is not limited to ICE detainees who are unfortunate enough to become ill or injured while in custody. Last month Chris Crane, Vice President of the Detention and Removal Operations of the union representing approximately 7,200 ICE employees who work in detention and removal operations, testified before the U.S. Congress. He described the abuse faced by immigrants detained at facilities run by private contractors and seriously questioned ICE's will to investigate and police the system.
I have been told that some contract workers in certain facilities have allegedly engaged in consensual sexual misconduct with detainees and it has also been alleged that there have been instances in which contract guards have raped female detainees. It is also alleged that contractors are smuggling contraband into the detention facilities. In areas near the southern border of the United States where contract workers also assist with the transportation of detainees, it has been alleged that contract guards have been involved in, and arrested for, smuggling foreign nationals into the United States. If any of these allegations are true, it certainly begs the question, "what is ICE doing to stop these problems?" As one veteran ICE officer stated to me last week, during a conversation regarding contract guards smuggling contraband into detention facilities in his area, "ICE managers are well aware of the problems in the contract facilities, but don't seem interested in doing anything about it." While this statement may surprise many in the American public, it would not surprise ICE employees who are well aware of problems within ICE management and the unethical manner in which ICE internal investigations are conducted.
Frankly, I have read enough articles about abuse and death in ICE detention. There can be no doubt that the system is corrupt to its core. Can you imagine if, instead, the Times had reported that an American had died in Iranian, North Korean, Cuban, or Syrian custody under similar circumstances? We would all be incensed. The Administration would call for heads to roll, impassioned speeches would thunder on the floor of Congress, and the blogs and media pundits would rage. But the cruelty described by the Times is homegrown. It is endemic to the ICE detention system and will continue unless something is done to stop it.
Several months ago homeland security secretary Janet Napolitano and ICE assistant secretary John Morton announced a review of the ICE detention operations with the stated goal of creating a "truly civil" detention system. In light of what we now know, that effort is too little, too late. The ICE detention system is a national disgrace, requiring President Obama to take immediate steps to protect the constitutional, civil, and human rights of ICE detainees, including,
Suspending ICE's detention authority by placing it in receivership with the Department of Justice pending a full investigation of the abuse and deaths in detention;
Ordering a top to bottom review of ICE, in particular its detention and removal operations, with the goal of overhauling the agency so that the human rights of ICE detainees will be respected and the rule of law enforced; and
Ordering the Department of Justice to commence appropriate civil and criminal investigations of all deaths in ICE detention and pursue all appropriate civil and criminal remedies.
We owe it to the families of the 107 people who died in ICE custody to see to it that the abuse, neglect, and deaths are stopped once and for all. Maybe then they will be able to take comfort in the fact that their loved ones did not die in vain.
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/186823568153827945-3721695949729474764?l=ailaleadership.blogspot.com
More... (http://ailaleadership.blogspot.com/2010/01/secret-horror-stories-death-and-abuse.html)
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9xhwn88fz4kKxlbTMoAkVqroh5JkLqjWJP_mnUWzFpGBPAD-ejB2oOyuhDAocnhoHZOlfN40tvjyKVB7ial0nTYjq83CtmKW-HyPhnzCVGQZK3Dbgh35KI-uf3o1SZ094EvqWi9x-gQo/s320/2010-01-01+ICE+detention+2.jpg (https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9xhwn88fz4kKxlbTMoAkVqroh5JkLqjWJP_mnUWzFpGBPAD-ejB2oOyuhDAocnhoHZOlfN40tvjyKVB7ial0nTYjq83CtmKW-HyPhnzCVGQZK3Dbgh35KI-uf3o1SZ094EvqWi9x-gQo/s1600-h/2010-01-01+ICE+detention+2.jpg)All Americans should be outraged by the Sunday New York Times report about how ICE officials schemed to cover up the deaths of detainees in detention. http://bit.ly/6p2xlX. The online edition includes a link to a horrifying video of an ICE detainee, Mr. Boubacar Bah, who, after mysteriously suffering a skull fracture, was handcuffed while writhing in agony on the floor in his own vomit, then locked-up in an isolation cell for 13 hours without medical treatment and, finally, transported to a hospital in a coma where he later died.
It would be one thing if death in ICE detention was a rare occurrence. But, unfortunately, it's all too common. In a related article, also published Sunday, the Times reports about other ICE detainee deaths which were the result of substandard medical care and abuse. http://bit.ly/6gJlXu.
As I sat down to write this blog, I hoped to pen a stinging piece expressing my anger and calling for a full overhaul of ICE's detention system, not just more press releases and empty promises. But the New York Times articles speak for themselves �107 people have died in ICE custody since 2003 (not counting the immigrants who were released shortly before death so they wouldn't be added to the tally). Added to my anger is the revulsion that I feel toward an agency that is not only incompetent to care for those it locks up, but whose bureaucrats conspire to avoid paying detainees' medical bills and hide from bad publicity, rather than attend to immigrants in their custody. It seems not one of the faceless ICE bureaucrats is ever called to answer for his or her transgressions. Indeed, participating in the abuse and neglect of ICE detainees may have resume value. Just ask Nina Dozoretz, who was the longtime manager of ICE's Division of Immigration Health Services and Vice President of the Nakamoto Group, a company that, according to the Times, was hired by the Bush administration to monitor ICE detention. Dozoretz reportedly participated in the ICE conference calls where officials debated ways to avoid paying for Boubacar Bah's medical care, and came up with a scheme to shift the costs to his indigent relatives before he died. Shockingly, she was recently hired by the Obama administration to overhaul the ICE detainee healthcare system (I guess I won't hold my breath waiting for positive change I can believe in as it relates to ICE health care).
The abuse is not limited to ICE detainees who are unfortunate enough to become ill or injured while in custody. Last month Chris Crane, Vice President of the Detention and Removal Operations of the union representing approximately 7,200 ICE employees who work in detention and removal operations, testified before the U.S. Congress. He described the abuse faced by immigrants detained at facilities run by private contractors and seriously questioned ICE's will to investigate and police the system.
I have been told that some contract workers in certain facilities have allegedly engaged in consensual sexual misconduct with detainees and it has also been alleged that there have been instances in which contract guards have raped female detainees. It is also alleged that contractors are smuggling contraband into the detention facilities. In areas near the southern border of the United States where contract workers also assist with the transportation of detainees, it has been alleged that contract guards have been involved in, and arrested for, smuggling foreign nationals into the United States. If any of these allegations are true, it certainly begs the question, "what is ICE doing to stop these problems?" As one veteran ICE officer stated to me last week, during a conversation regarding contract guards smuggling contraband into detention facilities in his area, "ICE managers are well aware of the problems in the contract facilities, but don't seem interested in doing anything about it." While this statement may surprise many in the American public, it would not surprise ICE employees who are well aware of problems within ICE management and the unethical manner in which ICE internal investigations are conducted.
Frankly, I have read enough articles about abuse and death in ICE detention. There can be no doubt that the system is corrupt to its core. Can you imagine if, instead, the Times had reported that an American had died in Iranian, North Korean, Cuban, or Syrian custody under similar circumstances? We would all be incensed. The Administration would call for heads to roll, impassioned speeches would thunder on the floor of Congress, and the blogs and media pundits would rage. But the cruelty described by the Times is homegrown. It is endemic to the ICE detention system and will continue unless something is done to stop it.
Several months ago homeland security secretary Janet Napolitano and ICE assistant secretary John Morton announced a review of the ICE detention operations with the stated goal of creating a "truly civil" detention system. In light of what we now know, that effort is too little, too late. The ICE detention system is a national disgrace, requiring President Obama to take immediate steps to protect the constitutional, civil, and human rights of ICE detainees, including,
Suspending ICE's detention authority by placing it in receivership with the Department of Justice pending a full investigation of the abuse and deaths in detention;
Ordering a top to bottom review of ICE, in particular its detention and removal operations, with the goal of overhauling the agency so that the human rights of ICE detainees will be respected and the rule of law enforced; and
Ordering the Department of Justice to commence appropriate civil and criminal investigations of all deaths in ICE detention and pursue all appropriate civil and criminal remedies.
We owe it to the families of the 107 people who died in ICE custody to see to it that the abuse, neglect, and deaths are stopped once and for all. Maybe then they will be able to take comfort in the fact that their loved ones did not die in vain.
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