Townhall
DHS Is Releasing Thousands of Illegal Immigrants Without a Court Date
Katie Pavlich
According to a number of Republican Senators, the Department of Homeland Security is releasing countless illegal immigrants into the interior of the United States without giving them a "Notice to Appear" in court.
In a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Senators Marsha Blackburn, Bill Hagerty, Bill Cassidy, Ted Cruz, Michael Rounds, Cindy Hyde-Smith and Ron Johnson are demanding answers about why there is break down in the usual process.
"According to recently obtained data, tens of thousands of immigration court cases concerning the removal of illegal aliens were dismissed during Fiscal Year 2022 (FY 2022) because of failures by Department of Homeland Security (DHS) officials to properly file “Notice to Appear” (NTA) documents ahead of the scheduled court hearings," they write.
"As you are likely aware, the initiation of removal proceedings against an illegal alien generally involves two steps. First, DHS serves the alien with an NTA alleging the alien’s removability from the United States and scheduling a court date and location for the alien to appear for an immigration hearing," the Senators continue. "Second, DHS files that NTA with the immigration court that will hold the hearing. Importantly, even if a hearing is scheduled, jurisdiction with the court does not vest until the NTA is filed with the court—meaning that if an NTA is not filed, the immigration court is forced to dismiss the case against the alien, as a result of which the alien remains in the United States illegally with no immigration proceeding pending."
Further, the Senators are pointing out the lack of NTAs has significantly worsened under the leadership of Mayorkas.
"What caused this substantial spike in incidences of DHS officials not filing an NTA after you took office and, consequently, tens of thousands of immigration cases against illegal aliens being dismissed because of DHS’s failure to file paperwork? We urge you to immediately review DHS policies and practices relating to the issuance and filing of NTAs,” they write.
Meanwhile, the number of illegal immigrants pouring into the country continues at record rates and is expected to intensify with the lifting of Title 42 later this month.