ACLU sues over policy:
The American Civil Liberties Union challenged the Trump administration’s broad expansion of deportation powers, alleging in a federal lawsuit Tuesday that it violates constitutional rights and could lead to errors, including deporting US citizens.
The lawsuit called the extension of the policy allowing immigration officers to deport migrants without requiring them to appear before judges as “dramatic” and “illegal.” Previously, the policy applied to those caught within 100 miles (160 kilometers) of the US border and who had been in the country under two weeks.
President Donald Trump first announced he would expand such powers just after taking office as part of his promise to crack down on illegal immigration. Last month, Acting DHS Secretary Kevin McAleenan touted the expansion as a way to address an “ongoing crisis on the southern border” by freeing up beds in detention centers and reducing the immigration courts backlog.
However, critics have said it gives immigration officers too much power and could embolden them to indiscriminately round up immigrants. The announcement left immigration attorneys scrambling, with some advising their clients to collect as much documentation as possible to prove they’ve been in the US.
The ACLU, along with the American Immigration Council, argued in the lawsuit that the expansion essentially gives low-level immigration officers the power to indiscriminately deport anyone without meaningful review, like a hearing or having an attorney.
“A closed proceeding without any external scrutiny will always be arbitrary,” said Anand Balakrishnan, an attorney with the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project. “It will always be unchecked and create too much room for error.” (AP)