The American Bar Association's House of Delegates has approved a resolution urging important changes in the way suspected terrorists are treated by the American government. The resolutions four points are
1. US citizens and residents who are detained within the US based on their designation as "enemy combatants" should be afforded the opportunity for meaningful judicial review of their status under a standard the reviewing court determines is appropriate to balance the needs of the detainee with national security concerns;
2. US citizens and residents detained as "enemy combatants" should not be denied access to counsel subject to appropriate conditions designed to balance the needs of the detainee with the requirements of national security;
3. Congress and the Executive Branch should establish clear standards and procedures and procedures governing the designation and treatment of people designated as "enemy combatants"; and
4. Congress and the Executive Branch should consider how their policy regarding "enemy combatants" may affect the response of other nations to future acts of terrorism.
***
The INS' Immigrant Services Division has informed the American Immigration Lawyers Association that in the case of an I-485 applicant who holds a valid employment authorization document, an I-765 may be submitted while an applicant happens to be outside the US. But the form must have a US address for the applicant and the applicant must intend to return to the US.
***
The Justice Department has issued regulations governing the enrollment of foreign nationals in flight training programs. The rules are issued based on the Aviation and Transportation Security Act which prohibits certain aviation schools training students on aircraft weighing more than 12,500 pounds or more unless the school notifies the Attorney General of the identity of the student and the Attorney General does not notify the school within 45 days that the candidate presents a risk to aviation or national security.
***
The Director of the INS' Chicago District Office has announced that he will retire on March 1st, the day the INS joins the Department of Homeland Security. Brian Perryman, 56, released a statement stating that he was pleased the INS improved customer service while maintaining a commitment to enforcing the nation's immigration laws.
***
Testimony continued this week in the trial against Tyson Foods. Tyson and several managers are facing charges related to an extensive scheme to smuggle Mexican workers into the US. Government officials testified that alien smugglers were paid with checks printed with the address of the company's corporate headquarters. Prosecutors argue that this shows that top executives must have known about and condoned the hiring of illegal workers. A Tyson spokesman argues that the checks only show that certain rogue employees participated in the scheme. Furthermore, the company contends that they will present other evidence to show that the involved employees "went to great lengths to make sure no one at corporate headquarters knew what was going on." For more extensive information on the case, see the article published last week in this newsletter at http://www.visalaw.com/03feb1/11feb103.html.
***
A former senior inspector for the INS who worked at the airport in Calgary, Canada has been deported by the Canadian government back to the US. The inspector just completed a six month jail term for a bribery scheme. The inspector, Hector Ramirez Garcia, was convicted for a scheme that involved creating a company that took nearly $30,000 from Hydro Kleen Group Inc. of Red Deer, Alberta. Garcia entered the names of staffers from Hydro Kleen's two main competitors into a US computer alert system in order to delay their employees at the border. One of the two affected companies, Eliminator Pigging Systems, Inc. folded after Garcia stopped the company's staff from fulfilling contracts in the United States. Hydro Kleen has already paid the other company, Innovative Coke Expulsion, Inc., $300,000 to settle a civil lawsuit.
