200 freed from immigration custody in Arizona

13 hours ago • By Perla Trevizo




More than 200 people have been released from immigration custody in Arizona in the last month following the Department of Homeland Security’s new enforcement priorities, ICE officials said.

On Nov. 20, President Obama announced that parents of U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents may apply for temporary relief from deportation and for work permits. He also expanded a similar program for children brought to the country illegally. About 140,000 people may benefit in Arizona, the D.C.-based Migration Policy Institute estimates.


The same day, citing limited resources, the DHS issued new guidance on who is a priority for deportation, including who agents and officers should stop, question and arrest, and which people they should release.


Nationwide, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has released 618 people as of Dec. 27, following case reviews of people in custody. That includes detainees who appear to qualify for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals or Deferred Action for Parents of Americans and Legal Permanent Residents, as well those who no longer fall within DHS’ specified enforcement priorities based on their case histories, ICE officials said in an email.


“Detainees who meet one of more of these criteria are being released from ICE custody under an order of supervision pending a final determination in their cases,” officials said. “Serious criminal offenders and other individuals who pose a significant threat to public safety remain a priority for ICE detention.” Officers have a checklist to see if people qualify for deferred action or whether they fall under the agency’s enforcement priorities, which include suspected terrorists, gang members, convicted felons and those caught at the border.


Guilebaldo Medina
, 34, who had been at the Eloy Detention Center since Sept. 17, was among the first to benefit from the review.


The day before Thanksgiving, ICE officials at Eloy said they needed to speak with him.


“It was weird because I didn’t have nothing to talk to them about at the moment,” he said. “They called me and put me in a room asked me five questions.”


Among the questions: whether he had been in the country on Nov. 20, 2014; had continuously lived in the United States since Jan. 1, 2010; whether he had U.S. citizen or legal permanent children; and queries about his criminal history.


Medina, who initially came to the U.S. as a young boy, has three U.S. citizen children and no criminal history.


The only thing on his record, he said, is a prior deportation from 1999. He qualifies for the Deferred Action Program for Parents of U.S. citizen children, which he can apply for in May.


He was released on his own recognizance on Nov. 26 and has to report to an immigration officer every three months.


“It felt that all the hard work as a family and sacrifices my wife made and my attorney to help me out meant a lot,” he said.


Local immigration attorneys said they have noticed the difference.

“I didn’t think it would hit the ground as quickly as it did,” said Patricia Mejia, a Tucson-based immigration attorney.

In 2011, DHS issued another memo guiding officers on who they should prioritize for deportation and the use of prosecutorial discretion, but it wasn’t as specific and black-and-white, Mejia said.


“They are simple questions ‘yes’ or ‘no,’” she said, which allows for a quicker analysis.


ICE is also reviewing the cases of people who are not in detention who already have scheduled deportations, but people can also proactively seek prosecutorial discretion, ICE officials said.


“It’s definitely playing out to some extent as I would hope it would,” said Mo Goldman, a local immigration attorney.


“Time will tell how much of an impact it’s going to have in the long run,” he said. “While this is all kind of new reviewing these cases, I’m wondering if it’s going to continue and be a priority for them six months or a year down the road.”


Although Medina has jumped one hurdle, he knows it’s not over.


“I just pray every day to not lose focus of what I need to do and fight for my family,” he said. “Whatever they tell me to do, I’m going to keep following instructions until I can be legal.”

http://tucson.com/news/local/border/...886a0d4f4.html