blog

May
05

A couple of notes about prosecutorial discretion


At least in the San Francisco jurisdiction, it seems that counsel for the DHS is making good use of the "Morton Memo" and agreeing to administrative closure of removal hearings where the person does not represent an "enforcement priority."


We just reached an agreement with DHS to administrative close in a case where our client has a criminal conviction and is completely ineligible for any form of relief. It was an important reminder that, even respondents who are not perfect, and who may even seem to fall into the enforcement priorities listed, are not without hope for prosecutorial discretion.


Also, it looks like ICE could be starting to cancel immigration bonds for administratively closed cases, giving the people who paid the bonds their money back. We recently asked for bond cancellation in an administratively closed case and it was cancelled right away.