U.S. Rep. Raúl Grijalva during an interview December 2014 for Metro Week.Listen
U.S. Rep. Raul Grijalva, (D-Arizona) is asking the Department of Homeland Security to explain how it is implementing deportation policies after human rights groups have complained about “unfair” detentions and deportations.
Grijalva and 39 other members of Congress - including freshman Rep. Ruben Gallego - wrote a letter to DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson Monday with recommendations and requests for clarification, specifically regarding how the department is following orders from the White House.
When President Barack Obama announced his executive actions on immigration in November, he directed DHS to focus on deporting and detaining dangerous criminals instead of low-priority undocumented families.
The members of Congress say that’s not always the case.
“Community members, advocates and media reports indicate that ICE fails to or inconsistently applies the exceptions within each of these enforcement priorities,” the letter said. “And in some cases, even targeted individuals who fall outside the enforcement priorities.”
They wrote that many of those cases are people without criminal records who would qualify for the president’s temporary deportation relief.
Obama's plan would allow people who have been in the country at least five years, and who have children who are U.S. citizens or legal permanent residents, to defer deportation and receive work permits, assuming they pass background checks and meet other criteria.
It would also expand an already-implemented program that gives temporary work permits to young immigrants brought to the U.S. as children.
The day before thousands of people could apply for some of the changes in February, a district judge in Texas placed an injunction on the president’s executive actions, preventing the administration from enacting the changes.
The Justice Department requested an emergency stay that would have allowed the federal government to start implementing the program while the case was in court. The request was denied.
The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals heard that request last month and a decision is expected in the coming weeks.
In Arizona an estimated 130,000 people could benefit from the executive actions on immigration.
Representatives with the Department of Homeland Security did not reply to a request for comment.
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