Miami Immigration Lawyers Blog

The chief legal office in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), the Office of the Principal Legal Advisor, released new guidance on the implementation of the Morton memo on prosecutorial discretion, which was issued in June 2011.

The guidance consists of a memo from Peter Vincent, the ICE Principal Legal Advisor, another memo reiterating key aspects of the Morton memo, and a "Next Steps" memo from ICE.

The memo from Peter Vincent indicates that his office will conduct a two month review of the cases being sent by each ICE office of chief counsel to the Justice Department. The review is said to last until January 13th, 2012, after which time the office of principal legal advisor will issue "a revised policy for the continuation of his review."

DHS in August announced that it would review deportations on a case-by-case basis, prioritizing the deportation of criminals over other illegal immigrants. On December 4th, the Justice Department and DHS will launch a six-week pilot program in two jurisdictions, Baltimore and Denver, to test run the process of reviewing cases currently pending in court, the department said in a statement.

ICE has also started scenario-based training for implementation of prosecutorial discretion, adding that the agency has a January 13th deadline for all ICE enforcement officers and attorneys nationwide to have gone through the training.

Guidance to ICE attorneys on implementing the prosecutorial discretion policy lists examples of illegal aliens who generally are not enforcement priorities. An example would be a child who is in the United States for more than five years, and is either in school or who has successfully completed high school.

Also not an enforcement priority is an illegal immigrant over the age of 65 who has been present in the United States for more than 10 years, or generally, anyone who has a "very long-term presence in the United States, has an immediate family member who is a United States citizen, and has established compelling ties and made compelling contributions to the United States," the guidance says.

However, the guidance tells attorneys that if they decide to exercise prosecutorial discretion, they must first vet the alien in question for national security and public safety concerns. "No exercise of discretion under this case review may proceed without this vetting," it says.

For more information about prosecutorial discretion, please contact Miami immigration lawyer, Antonio Revilla at arevilla@immigrationmiami.com or (305) 858-2323.

About Revilla Law Firm, P.A.
Antonio Revilla is a Former U.S. Immigration Prosecutor and Miami Immigration Lawyer. Mr. Revilla founded his immigration law practice, Revilla Law Firm, when he saw a dire need for aggressive immigration representation and deportation defense in order to keep families united.

If you wish to receive more information about any immigration issue, you can contact Revilla Law Firm at 305-858-2323 to speak with Antonio Revilla. He can also be reached via email at arevilla@immigrationmiami.com or by phone (305) 858-2323.