Posted on July 23, 2019

Trump Administration Moves to Speed Up Deportations with Expedited Removal Expansion

Vanessa Romo, NPR, July 22, 2019

The Trump administration announced on Monday it is expanding fast-track deportation regulations to include the removal of undocumented immigrants who cannot prove they have been in the U.S. continuously for two years or more.

The change dramatically expands the ability of the Department of Homeland Security to quickly deport certain immigrants without any of the due-process protections granted to most other people, including the right to an attorney and to a hearing before a judge. It is set to go into effect Tuesday and is the latest escalation of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown.

{snip}

Currently, undocumented immigrants who cross into the U.S. by land can be deported without an immigration hearing if they are arrested within 100 miles of the border during the first 14 days after their arrival. Those who arrive by sea can be deported without legal proceedings if they are unable to prove they have been living in the U.S. for two years or more.

But under the latest proposal, all geographical limitations would be lifted and rapid removal proceedings would be applied to all undocumented immigrants who have been in the country for less than two years.

The move is also designed to mitigate a massive court backlog of immigration cases “and will reduce the significant costs to the government associated with full removal proceedings before an immigration judge.” {snip}

{snip}

The DHS notice stated unaccompanied children may not be placed in expedited removal under current law. Further, undocumented immigrants can apply for asylum when they are apprehended, potentially delaying an immediate deportation until a credible-fear hearing and a determination is made. People who are deported under expedited removal regulations have no right to appeal.

The pro-immigration American Immigration Council estimates thousands of people could be deported as a result of the expansion.