American Bar Association Calls For New Immigration Court

By Jorge Rivas Feb 09, 2010

According to the New York Times, the American Bar Association (ABA) is recommending the creation of a separate immigration court system that would be similar to federal courts that decide tax cases. Patrick Young at LongIslandWins.com describes the issues raised in the article:

The immigration courts are not courts in the traditional sense of the word. Federal Courts are a seperate branch of the government and are independent from the prosecutors who bring cases before them. Immigration courts, on the other hand, are part of the Justice Department and under control of the Attorney General. The court that hears appeals from the immigration courts, the Board of Immigration Appeals, is similarly under the jurisdiction of the Attorney General and the Attorney General can actually reverse decisions of the Board. This has created conflicts of interest in the immigration courts, and, during the Bush administration, an embarrassing number of successful appeals to the Federal courts. The ABA proposes to create a special court system within the Executive Branch, that would be insulated from undue influence by the Attorney General and the Secretary of Homeland Security.

With the creation of a new immigration court, judges would have more discretion when looking at deportation cases.

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