DHS IS QUIETLY ROUNDING UP ALIENS WITH OLD DEPORTATION ORDERS

by Michael J. Gurfinkel, Esq.

The Los Angeles Times has reported that agents of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), are aggressively tracking down and going after illegal immigrants with deportation orders on their records.

In the last 12 months alone, ICE agents have caught and deported at least 2,341 illegal immigrants in the Los Angeles area, which includes Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino and Riverside counties. The targets are "absconders," meaning those illegal aliens who were already ordered deported but never left the U.S.   They simply ignored the court's deportation orders, and "disappeared" or "went into hiding," instead of departing the U.S. as ordered.

The arrests were made under the Absconder Apprehension Initiative Program (AAIP), launched by ICE, along with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the US Marshals Service.

The DHS estimates that there are over 400,000 aliens who have remained in the U.S. despite deportation orders, or voluntary departure orders. At least 35,000 absconders are known to reside in Southern California, and thousands more on the East Coast, including New York, New Jersey, etc.

ICE has deployed several hundred agents nationwide to go after these absconders, and plans to hire more agents next year, with its increased budget after the 9/11 attacks.

Many Filipinos are also on the absconder list. They may have applied for asylum, but either didn't go to their hearing, or were ordered deported by the Immigration Judge.   These Filipinos may have been victimized by consultants who lured them into applying for asylum based on fictitious and frivoulous claims of persecution in the Philippines, all to get work permits.

While the political asylum applications may have enabled them to briefly obtain work permit and bought them time to seek other ways of legalizing their status, many were sent notices to appear for a hearing, but ignored them, or appeared, but their applications were denied. They were sent deportation orders or orders to voluntary depart the U.S., but many of them ignored the orders and just "disappeared." They went on with their lives as if everything was normal. Others may have never received the hearing notices, and were ordered deported "in absentia," or in their absence.

With the Absconder Program, it is possible that any day now, ICE or FBI agents will be knocking at their doors or at their places of work, to arrest and send them back to the Philippines.

They should immediately seek the advice of a reputable attorney now, before the ICE agents pick them up. There may be other legal remedies available, to avoid deportation, or maybe even to legalize their status. Although absconders are not ordinarily entitled to legal relief or immigration benefits, it could be possible that their circumstances could qualify them for such relief or to have their deportation case "reopened," depending on the facts of the particular case. But this determination can only be made on a case-by-case basis, after a thorough review of the underlying case and facts.

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