ICE Releases Memo on Implementation of July 2019 Designation of Individuals Subject to Expedited Removal
In a filing to the District Court for the District of Columbia in Make the Road NY v. McAleenan, No. 1:19-cv-02369 (D.D.C.), the government submitted internal guidance on the implementation of the July 23, 2019, expansion of expedited removal to the full scope permitted by statute. After July 23, anyone arrested anywhere in the United States who is inadmissible under INA § 212(a)(6)(C) or (7), has not been admitted or paroled at a port of entry, and cannot prove continuous physical presence in the country for at least two years may be subject to expedited removal.
According to the guidance, DHS may begin subjecting noncitizens to expanded expedited removal “on or about September 1, 2019.” The guidance further states that DHS anticipates that expanded expedited removal “will primarily be used by ICE in the Criminal Alien Program and worksite enforcement contexts.”
The guidance lists “potentially relevant factors” for ICE officers to consider when exercising their “broad” discretion and lists types of evidence that “may demonstrate an alien’s continuous physical presence in the United States.” Significantly, the guidance provides that noncitizens “shall be permitted a brief but reasonable opportunity to obtain it or communicate with a third party to obtain . . . evidence [of continuous physical presence].”