Reports: More than 63,500 Cases Dropped Because DHS Didn’t File Charges
While the border chief is, allegedly, literally asleep at the wheel
By Andrew R. Arthur on October 19, 2022
The Transactional Resources Access Clearinghouse (TRAC) at Syracuse University reported on October 17 that more than 63,500 removal cases in immigration court have been dismissed in FY 2022 because DHS — primarily Border Patrol agents — had failed to file charging documents. That news comes on the heels of a Politico expose airing complaints that CBP Commissioner Chris Magnus is “unengaged in his job” and has fallen asleep during meetings. While we’ve long known that the administration’s border policy is bad, its performance is — if anything — worse.
Notices to Appear. By regulation, removal proceedings commence when DHS files a “Notice to Appear” (NTA) with the immigration court.
The NTA is a charging document, similar in nature to a criminal indictment. Pursuant to statute, it provides the alien (deemed a “respondent” in removal proceedings) with information related to the proceedings, sets out the alien’s rights, and lists the specific charges of removability and the factual allegations supporting those charges. I will return to those statutory requirements below.
Often, the sole issue in removal proceedings is whether DHS has properly served the alien with the NTA. Pursuant to section 240(b)(5) of the INA, an immigration judge must order a respondent who fails to appear at a scheduled removal proceeding removed in absentia, provided DHS proves the respondent has been served with the NTA.
If DHS fails to file the NTA with the immigration court, however, that’s simple malpractice. As TRAC explains, however, it has become more common since:
https://cis.org/Arthur/Reports-More-63500-Cases-Dropped-Because-DHS-Didnt-File-Charges
