Matthew — Page 14

I Spoke at the NY AILA Chapter’s Monthly Meeting

March 4, 2013 by Matthew

I was on a panel that spoke at tonight’s monthly meeting for the NY Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. I spoke on a panel of immigration attorneys that consisted of H. Raymond Fasano and David Isaacson. We spoke about new court decisions that immigration lawyers should know about. I spoke about recent cases from the Supreme Court about immigration. The Hon. Robert Katzmann of the Second Circuit and Katherine O’Hagan Wolfe, the clerk of the Second Circuit were also speakers tonight.

I Have Relocated My Office

March 4, 2013 by Matthew

My old office building is being converted to condominiums, so I have relocated my office. My new address is: 265 Canal Street, Suite 506, New York, NY 10013. My phone number, fax number and e-mail address remain the same. My new office is a few blocks from my old address. I’m still within walking distance of 26 Federal Plaza. The new office is closer to the Canal Street train stations for the N/Q/R/6 and A/C/E lines than my old office.

I like my new office. It is a lot bigger than my old office. Apparently, this building was either a warehouse or factory that was converted to an office building. It has old wood floors and high ceilings, which give the building character.

As an immigration lawyer, being on Canal Street has historical significance. Canal Street was part of the Five Points of Downtown Manhattan. The term the “melting pot” was created to describe this area at the turn of the 20th Century because so many immigrants came to live in the Five Points.

I hope to have my contact information on the website updated shortly.

Sequestration Shows That ICE Does Not Have to Detain Immigrants

February 26, 2013 by Matthew

Yesterday, it was in the news that because of the pending federal budget sequestration the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) was releasing detainees. What ICE is doing is utilizing alternatives to detention such as supervised release and ankle bracelets. Today, ICE provided the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) with the following statement about the releases:

As fiscal uncertainty remains over the continuing resolution and possible sequestration, ICE has reviewed its detained population to ensure detention levels stay within ICE’s current budget. Over the last week, ICE has reviewed several hundred cases and placed these individuals on methods of supervision less costly than detention. All of these individuals remain in removal proceedings. Priority for detention remains on serious criminal offenders and other individuals who pose a significant threat to public safety.

Ultimately, the question to be asked is why were these people placed on these methods of supervision that are less costly than detention in the first place? Obviously, since ICE is doing this, it believes that it has the legal authority to do so. Thus, why detain non-dangerous people at tax payer expense when they can be subjected to less costly methods of supervision. Hopefully, someone at ICE will realize that placing non-dangerous immigrants facing deportation on supervised release, instead of detention, is something that should happen all the time and not just when there are budget problems.