Lawyer: Migrants flown to Martha’s Vineyard get visas

May be considered potential crime victims

TALLAHASSEE — Some of the 49 migrants flown to Martha’s Vineyard by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration are now able to work legally in the United States and have temporary protections from deportation because they are considered victims of a potential crime, their attorney says.

The migrants are eligible for protection because they applied for a special kind of visa meant for crime victims who are helping law enforcement investigate suspected criminal activity. They applied for what are known as U visas last year after they said they had been tricked into taking charter flights from San Antonio, Texas to the Massachusetts island with false promises of jobs and other aid, said Rachel Self, an attorney for the migrants.

The migrant flight program was designed to remove “unauthorized aliens” from Florida. But critics, including immigration advocacy groups, have pointed out that the migrants had legal status in the United States as asylum seekers and that they were found in Texas, not Florida.

DeSantis has maintained the flights were conducted lawfully and that migrants boarded the flights “voluntarily.” Yet the recruitment tactics used in the first of the governor’s migrant relocation program have resulted in a criminal investigation by the Bexar County sheriff in Texas and a federal lawsuit by some of the migrants who have claimed they were deceived by the state.

Now, some of the migrants have been granted U visas, which are “set aside for victims of certain crimes who have suffered mental or physical abuse and are helpful to law enforcement or government officials in the investigation or prosecution of criminal activity,” according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

They can eventually lead to permanent lawful status in the United States. The migrants — who were from Venezuela and Peru — were eligible to apply for the visas after Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar, a Democrat, certified that they were victims of a crime.

After waiting for more than a year, some migrants earlier this month received “bona fide determinations” in their U visa petition, a status that allows them to obtain temporary work permits and protects them from deportation until their visa becomes available, Self said. It was not immediately clear how many migrants had received that status from the federal government. Congress only allows the federal government to issue 10,000 such visas each year.

The “bona fide determination” gives the migrants targeted by the state of Florida temporary protections from deportation while they wait for the visa.

DeSantis’ office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Since last June, there have been no updates on the criminal investigation in Texas.

At that time, Salazar recommended that the district attorney in Bexar County bring criminal charges over alleged deceptive tactics used by the state to lure migrants onto the flights.

Specifically, Salazar recommended both felony and misdemeanor charges of unlawful restraint that have the potential of snaring some of those who helped DeSantis carry out the flights.

The district attorney has not yet announced any action on the case.

“The Bexar County DA’s inaction in this matter is concerning and cannot be understated,” Self said in a statement to the Herald/Times on Monday.