How to Deal With Immigration

ICE 

Immigration 

How to Deal With Deportation

YOUR RIGHTS

·      You have the right to remain silent. If you wish to exercise that right, say so out loud.

·      You have the right to refuse to consent to a search of yourself, your car or your home.

·      If you are not under arrest, you have the right to calmly leave.

·      You have the right to a lawyer if you are arrested. .

·      Regardless of your immigration or citizenship status, you have constitutional rights.  Exercise those rights.

Cuáles son tus derechos

•       Usted tiene derecho a permanecer en silencio. Si desea ejercer ese derecho, dígalo en voz alta.

“I Want to remain silent.”

• Usted tiene el derecho de negarse a dar su consentimiento a una búsqueda de usted mismo, su automóvil o su hogar.

“I do not consent to a search.”

• Si no está bajo arresto, tiene el derecho de salir tranquilamente.

“Am I under arrest?”

• Tiene derecho a un abogado si es arrestado.

“I want to call a lawyer”

• Independientemente de su estado de inmigración o ciudadanía, usted tiene derechos constitucionales. Ejercer esos derechos.

·      .

·      YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES

·         Stay calm and be polite.

·         Don’t interfere with or obstruct the police.

·         Don’t lie or give false documents.

·         Be prepared in case you are arrested.

·         Remember the details of the encounter.

·        
• Mantenga la calma y sea educado. • No interfiera ni obstruya a la policía. • No mienta ni da documentos falsos. • Esté preparado en caso de que sea arrestado. • Recuerde los detalles del encuentro

IF YOU ARE STOPPED FOR QUESTIONING

·      Remain calm.  Don’t run, argue, resist or obstruct the police, even if you are innocent or police are violating your rights.

·      Keep your hands where police can see them.

·      Ask if you can leave.  If the officer says yes, calmly and silently walk away. If you are under arrest, you have a right to know why.  Don’t be afraid to ask why you are under arrest.

·      Like every American, you have the right to remain silent and cannot be punished for refusing to answer questions.  If you do not wish to speak to the officer, simply tell the officer that you want to remain silent.

·      You can refuse an officer’s request to search your body or your belongings.  Police are permitted to: ”pat down” your clothing if they suspect a weapon. You should not physically resist, but you have the right to refuse consent for any further search. If you do consent, it can affect you later in court.

·         Puede rechazar la solicitud de un oficial para registrar su cuerpo o sus pertenencias. A la policía se le permite "tapar" su ropa si sospecha que tiene un arma. No debes resistir físicamente, pero tienes el derecho de rechazar el consentimiento para cualquier otra búsqueda. Si usted da su consentimiento, puede afectarle más tarde en la corte.

·       

IF YOU ARE STOPPED IN YOUR CAR

·      Stop the car in a safe place as quickly as possible.

·      Turn off the car, turn on the internal light, open the window part way and place your hands on the wheel.

·      Upon request, show police your driver’s license, registration and proof of insurance.

·      If an officer or immigration agent asks to look inside your car, you can refuse to consent to the search. But if police believe your car contains evidence of a crime, your car can be searched without your consent.

·      The driver and all passengers have the right to remain silent. If you are a passenger, you can ask if you are free to leave. If the officer says yes, sit silently or calmly leave. Even if the officer says no, you have the right to remain silent.

IF QUESTIONED ABOUT YOUR IMMIGRATION STATUS

·      You have the right to remain silent.  You need not talk about your immigration or citizenship status with police, immigration agents or any other officials. You do not have to answer questions about where you were born, whether you are a U.S. citizen, or how you entered the country.  Just stay quiet, as you talking could hurt your chances at potential immigration relief in the future.

·      If you are not a U.S. citizen and an immigration agent requests your immigration papers, you must show them if you have them with you.  If you are over 18, carry your immigration documents with you at all times. If you do not have immigration papers, say you want to remain silent.

·      Do not lie about your citizenship status or provide fake documents.  If you claim that you are a United States Citizen and you are not, you can face serious criminal issues.  Also, it is better to remain silent, than to provide fake documents.

·      .

IF POLICE OR IMMIGRATION AGENTS COME TO YOUR HOME

·      If immigration agents come to your home, you can refuse them entry, unless they have a warrant.

·      Ask the officer to slip the warrant under the door or hold it up to the window so you can inspect it.  A search warrant allows police to enter the address listed on the warrant, but officers can only search the areas and for the items listed. An arrest warrant allows police to enter the home of the person listed on the warrant if they believe the person is inside. A warrant of removal/deportation (ICE warrant) does not allow officers to enter a home without consent.

·      Even if officers have a warrant, you have the right to remain silent. If you choose to speak to the officers, step outside and lock the door. Do not allow them to talk you into anything.

·     
• Si la policía o los agentes de inmigración llegan a su casa, usted puede rechazar su entrada, a menos que tengan una orden judicial. • Pídale al oficial que mete la orden bajo la puerta o que la sostenga hasta la ventana para que pueda inspeccionarla. Sí, usted puede hacer esto. Porque tienes derechos. Una orden de allanamiento permite a la policía entrar en la dirección indicada en la orden, pero los oficiales sólo pueden buscar las áreas y los artículos enumerados. Una orden de arresto permite a la policía entrar en el hogar de la persona que aparece en la orden si cree que la persona está dentro. Una orden de remoción / deportación (orden judicial ICE) no permite a los agentes entrar en una casa sin consentimiento. • Incluso si los oficiales tienen una orden judicial, usted tiene el derecho de guardar silencio. Si decide hablar con los oficiales, salga y cierre la puerta

IF YOU ARE CONTACTED BY THE FBI

·      If an FBI agent comes to your home or workplace, you do not have to answer any questions. 

·      If you are asked to meet with FBI agents for an interview, you have the right to say you do not want to be interviewed.  If you agree to an interview, do not go alone. 

·      You do not have to answer questions you feel uncomfortable answering

·      WHAT TO DO IF YOU ARE ARRESTED

·      Do not resist arrest.

·      Remain silent

·      Tell the officer that you wish to remain silent, say this more than once. Officers often have video – speak calm and clear

·      Do not give explanations

·      Do not sign anything or make decisions without your lawyer.

·      You have the right to make a local phone call.  The police cannot listen if you call Memorize your spouse’s number tell them the officer’s names and your exact location

·      Prepare yourself and your family in case you are arrested. Have back up person to care for young children or pick them up from school. Memorize the phone numbers of your family members

·      WHAT TO DO IF YOU ARE TAKEN INTO IMMIGRATION (OR “ICE”) CUSTODY

·      You have the right to a lawyer.  Tell ICE that you want to call your lawyer You have the right to contact your consulate or have an officer inform the consulate of your arrest.

·      Tell the ICE agent you wish to remain silent. Do not discuss your immigration status with anyone don’t share information with others arrested. Remain calm quiet and pray

·      Refuse to sign any documents, such as a voluntary departure or stipulated removal, Request and remember your immigration number (“A” number) Signing this is a big mistake and may keep you from legally returning for 10 years

 “Notice to Appear” in Immigration Court or if you have been given an “Immigration Hold” while in custody, you need to contact a lawyer as soon as possible. Experienced lawyers know various ways of defending you against deportation. Some of these ways are described here:

1.    Asylum, Withholding and CAT: If you fear that you are in danger in your home country, you may qualify for relief from removal based on asylum or other related grounds.

2.    Cancellation of Removal (for LPRs): If you have a green card but have committed a crime or otherwise have been placed into removal proceedings, find a lawyer immediately. You may qualify for Cancellation of Removal. The criteria are difficult to meet, but they include the following three basic requirements: (1) living in the US for 7 years since being legally admitted; (2) living for 5 years with permanent residence (green card) before committing a crime or getting into removal proceedings; and (3) never having been convicted of an “aggravated felony” for immigration purposes.

3.    Cancellation of Removal (for Non-LPRs): If you don’t have a green card or are undocumented, the law provides one way to avoid deportation, but it applies only in the rarest of instances. Among other requirements, the applicant must show that she has lived in the US for 10 years and that her deportation would cause “exceptional and extremely unusual hardship” to the her spouse, child, or parent who is a United States Citizen or permanent resident. Never apply for this without speaking to an experienced immigration attorney.

4.    U-Visas: It is important to remember that you can sometimes avoid deportation if you are legally eligible for a visa. One visa that commonly comes up in removal proceedings is the U-visa. The U-visa is specifically for people who (1) have been the victim of certain serious crimes, (2) have suffered serious and ongoing harm as a result, (3) have reported the crimes to the police, and (4) have cooperated in bringing the perpetrator to justice. Talk to a lawyer to see if you can attempt to apply for a U-visa. Remember that an important prerequisite to applying for a U-visa is cooperating with the police and the prosecution; it will be essential that they certify that you have been cooperative before you can obtain this visa.

5.    Adjustment of Status: If you are married to a US citizen or permanent resident, or if a family member has filed a petition for you, you might be eligible to apply for a green card directly. Depending on how you entered the United States, you might need to go back to your home country to process the green card, but if not, you might be eligible to “adjust your status” to permanent residence here in the United States.

6.    Voluntary Departure: If you have no other viable option or if you would rather just be deported, you or an attorney can apply for you to leave voluntarily at your own expense. The judge will only grant this if you can show that you have enough money to buy your own passage, if you have a valid travel document, and if you can convince the judge that you will not stay beyond the set date of departure..

7.    Prosecutorial Discretion: If you have no other viable option you can apply for “prosecutorial discretion.” In the summer of 2011, the Department of Homeland Security released a few memos discussing the ability for ICE attorneys to grant immigrants “prosecutorial discretion” in very strong cases and to avoid deportation even when there is already a deportation order. It is very difficult to win this form of immigration relief..

8.    Motions to Suppress: If you have been targeted by ICE in a way that egregiously violated your constitutional rights you may be able to suppress the whole proceeding. Proving this requires evidence, pictures, written word, witnesses etc  Motions to Suppress are not commmon in immigration court; however, in certain situations they can work in removal proceedings as well.

9.    Others: There are also 212(h) waivers, 212(c) waivers and other legal statutes which allow people in certain situations to prevent or avoid deportation.

10.                      1. Apply for political asylum: In recent years asylum grants have jumped to over 50% Must demonstrate profound fear of persecution based on race, religion, nationality, political opinion or social group must be shown. Country of origin may or may not make sense

11.                      2. Waivers of removal: The most common ways to stop deportation include the old 212(c) pardon for green card holders with certain crimes who can show that their good deeds outweigh their bad acts.   212(c) was replaced by Cancellation of Removal for Certain Permanent Residents but the balancing test is the same.

12.                      3. Prosecutorial Discretion: A memo issued in recent years directs The Department of Homeland Security to stop deportation for humanitarian reasons.  This guidance is nothing new as prosecutorial discretion has been around for decades.  Many are disappointed that more immigrants have not received this protection, but a strong application may stop deportation.

13.                      4. Cancellation of Removal for non permanent residents: Unlike the waiver noted above, this application to stop deportation is for people who ask an Immigration Judge to give them a green card upon proving ten years in the United States, good moral character plus exceptional and unusual hardship to certain American family members, typically children.

14.                      5.  U Visa: This application is for immigrant victims of violent crimes and is used to deter criminals from preying on the undocumented. Along with the T visa for victims of human trafficking, the U benefits foreigners who cooperate with law enforcement agencies.  Not only will it stop deportation but it will result in a green card, eventually.

15.                      6. I-601 waivers for immigrants charged with fraud, unlawful presence or crime: The immigrant generally must have no drug offenses, and also needs to prove extreme hardship to a qualifying relative, frequently a United States citizen, but in some cases a green card holder.  Seven years of living in America is required as well in most but not all 601 cases.

16.                      7. Voluntary Departure:  When all else fails, promising to buy a ticket to leave still beats removal.  Stops deportation still results in leaving the country but makes a lawful re-entry easier.

17.                      The Catholic Church has resources to help you BEFORE you get to these crossroads. Ask for help. Get advice. Have a plan for your family