http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mpl/nation/3215857

June 7, 2005, 10:05PM

Expansion of instant deportation sought

New Expedited Removal program lets Border Patrol quickly ship illegal immigrants home
By ALEXIS GRANT
Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON - U.S. immigration officials said Tuesday they hope to expand a program that allows Border Patrol officers to deport illegal immigrants without taking them before a judge.

Used at two of the 20 crossings along the Mexican border, the process called Expedited Removal may soon include all southern Border Patrol areas, said Wesley Lee, acting director of detention and removal operations at the Homeland Security Department.

Border Patrol agents can use the process to send Mexican immigrants home quickly, but they more often apply it to immigrants from other countries who enter the United States from Mexico through Laredo, and Tucson, Ariz., as well as between ports of entry.

The average length of detention for immigrants under Expedited Removal is 26 days, compared with 89 days for those who face traditional removal procedures, Lee said at a Senate hearing.

Expanding the program will help to reduce the number of illegal immigrants who disappear within the country, said Stewart Verdery, adjunct fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Most who are caught by Border Patrol and released on the condition that they later appear before an immigration judge never show up for the hearing.

This year, 98,000 of the 800,000 illegal immigrants apprehended were from countries other than Mexico.

"(They) represent a massive new wave in migrants that bring significant concerns that nationals from countries with more terrorism activity than Mexico may be utilizing the southern border to enter the U.S.," Verdery said.

Some immigrant rights groups oppose the program, saying it is unfair to allow a low-level official to determine the future of an immigrant who may be seeking refuge from a dangerous situation.

"It's basically like saying you're not going to have your day in court," Brent Wilkes, executive director of the League of United Latin American Citizens, said in an interview.

Expedited Removal applies to immigrants caught within 100 miles of the border and who cannot prove they have been in the country more than 14 days.

Republican U.S. Sens. John Cornyn of Texas and Jon Kyl of Arizona co-chaired the hearing and are creating a comprehensive immigration bill that is scheduled for completion this month.

alexis.grant@chron.com