), Create custom alerts for specific article and case topics and, I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email. The department said it could not comment on the incidents raised to The Chronicle because the attorneys involved did not file complaints. Print Maggard was appointed as an ACIJ in January 2012. The department said all hiring for immigration courts and the Board of Immigration Appeals follows an open, merit-based process. ( The director of the courts in the department, James McHenry, spent 2005 to 2010 and 2011 to 2014 in Atlanta as an attorney for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement office that prosecutes immigration court cases. The agency expects parties and stakeholders to raise legitimate concerns about conduct, rather than simply make ad hominem attacks against adjudicators or express disagreement with the outcome of a particular case, McHenry wrote. If the allegations are specific, it takes little effort for a judge to figure out who filed the complaint, and attorneys describe instances of judges retaliating without consequences. And yes, objectively, I know its a sexist comment, and also its just so commonplace with immigration judges to make inappropriate comments like this and theres just no accountability for it.. Please allow for additional time to go through the security screening process. She said the Trump administration further chilled those who would complain about judges behavior with its choices of which judges to promote. You have to know whats happening with clients, competitors, practice areas, and industries. Antonini, who also knows McHenry, said he should have been well aware of Cassidys in-court behavior. He is still there, hearing immigrants' cases but stripped of his. Attorneys say Cassidys behavior should not have been a secret to the Justice Department. We are committed to an effective and efficient immigration court process and we are happy that Congress has given us the funding to hire additional immigration judges, as well as the support staff they need, said Maggard. In the Atlanta immigration courthouse, attorneys were dismayed when the Trump administration promoted Judge William Cassidy in 2019 to serve on the Board of Immigration Appeals. The 11 new judges, who were appointed by Attorney General Jeff . Password (at least 8 characters required). Your honest review allows judges to receive an assessment of their work, and to hopefully make adjustments so that at the end of the day, we have a more uniform application of the laws and regulations, with fairness, courtesy and compassion in all our immigration courts across the United States. Copyright Rate Your Immigration Judge 2023. The Justice Department has long lacked a strong system for reporting and responding to sexual harassment and misconduct. Another has been banned for more than seven years from the government building where he worked after management found he harassed female staff, but is still deciding cases. But, she said, he was in front of him., Atlanta immigration attorney Carolina Antonini says one judges inappropriate comments about women are so cumulative that it becomes like background noise., The Justice Department and McHenry declined to comment on McHenrys relationship to Cassidy or his role in promoting him. The department said all of its employees complete mandatory sexual harassment and misconduct awareness training. Removing judges who commit misconduct from the courts will be no easy task for Biden, as the system itself is part of the problem, experts say. Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) is responsible for adjudicating immigration cases by conducting immigration court proceedings, appellate reviews, and administrative hearings. A redacted copy of the report was provided to The Chronicle by Hoppock, who also received the inspector general investigation through the Freedom of Information Act. It called the current system difficult to use for complainants and judges alike. The complaint process doesnt effectively serve management, doesnt effectively serve the judges or employees of (the agency), and it certainly doesnt effectively serve the public.. The confirmation came in a reply to immigration attorney Matthew Hoppocks request. He and his colleagues are the next-to-last hope for immigrants. No. Email: tal.kopan@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @talkopan. These records, covering 2008 to 2013, were made public by attorney Bryan Johnson and a coalition of immigration legal groups after they received them through a Freedom of Information Act lawsuit. The bulk of complaints that were sustained were met with corrective actions, including training or counseling. EOIR's Office of the Chief Administrative Hearing Officer adjudicates immigration-related employment cases. These new immigration judges, along with their 19 colleagues who were invested in June, strengthen our immigration judge corps and will help our agency work towards decreasing our current backlog of more than 450,000 pending cases., Daniel J. Daugherty, Immigration Judge, Las Vegas Immigration Court. Learn how to tackle challenges like finding and retaining affordable staff, working better in a hybrid or remote environment, when and how to raise fees, and much more. Please see our Privacy Policy. Copyright 1993-document.write(new Date().getFullYear()) It said substantiated allegations will be treated seriously and consistently result in formal discipline up to dismissal.. The department did not take away Grants responsibilities or six-figure salary. In comparison, for its state court system, California has a Commission on Judicial Performance to investigate complaints against judges, an independent agency with investigatory powers and authority to impose discipline. Please take note of the information below and be prepared to follow these and any additional instructions provided to you when you arrive for your hearing. The brand-new 18th edition of Kurzban's Immigration Law Sourcebook is now shipping. A Freedom of Information Act request made public by Johnson revealed they grew close enough that they corresponded personally years later, with Cassidy wishing McHenry a happy Christmas and Easter in emails in 2018 and 2019, the year former Attorney General William Barr named Cassidy to the Board of Immigration Appeals. Together, the documents show mild consequences for subjects of repeated complaints, including Cassidy. It did not say whether it offers any additional gender sensitivity training for its judges. Learn more. In an interview, Slavin said the Justice Departments immigration courts division has long had a problem with discipline because it doesnt make policing judges conduct a priority, and because of a workplace culture that has at times been unfriendly toward women. A lock (LockA locked padlock) or https:// means youve safely connected to the .gov website. Click here to login, 2023, Portfolio Media, Inc. | About | Contact Us | Legal Jobs | Advertise with Law360 | Careers at Law360 | Terms | Privacy Policy | Cookie Settings | Help | Site Map, Enter your details below and select your area(s) of interest to stay ahead of the curve and receive Law360's daily newsletters, Email (NOTE: Free email domains not supported). Visitors will pass through a metal detector machine and are subject to additional screening if deemed necessary. The very structure of the courts creates the conditions that allow bad actors to escape consequences, experts say. Law360 provides the intelligence you need to remain an expert and beat the competition. Please see the agencys Public Health Noticefor more information. The Southern Poverty Law Center and another nonprofit group, the Innovation Law Lab, compiled several examples from focus groups of attorneys they held, which were included in a report criticizing the immigration court system. No, Im thinking I just need to get through this., She added, If all you have to do is force a smile so that your client is not deported, the answer is obvious what practitioners are going to do.. 1331 G Street NW, Suite 300 I dont want my daughter to grow up to become a professional and still have to suffer that kind of thing in this environment, Truslow said. If instructed to sit in a particular location, do not switch seats. Law360 takes your privacy seriously. Department of Justice, Executive Office for Immigration Review, https://www.foiaonline.gov/foiaonline/action/public/home. The George Washington University Law School, University of the Pacific - McGeorge School of Law, {{ userNotificationState.getAlertCount('bell') }}. In one instance, captured on courtroom audio, Cassidy had just granted relief from deportation in 2019 to a green card holder from Germany. In another instance, an attorney told The Chronicle she was reviewing a case file in the court offices when Cassidy walked up and began chatting with her. Sacramento, CA 95814. AILA.org should not be relied upon as the exclusive source for your legal research. Washington, DC 20005. He received a bachelor of arts degree in 1982 from Western Kentucky University; a masters of public administration in 1987 from Golden Gate University; Phones and electronic devices must be silenced in the court lobby. Public transit is available via SacRT. These judges behavior toward women is not an isolated phenomenon in the immigration courts system. He was allowed to keep his job, and still has it to this day, though he remains barred from working in the appeals courts headquarters unless his presence is unavoidable, such as in rare instances when the board hears oral arguments. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS He basically said to me, Are you naturally a blonde maybe? Like, I dont get it because Im a blonde, not a brunette, said the attorney, who requested anonymity because she still practices before the Atlanta court and is concerned about the way sexual harassment victims are treated when they go public. Acting Chief Immigration Judge Print Maggard presided over the investiture during a ceremony held Nov. 6, 2015, at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces in Washington D.C. A complaint process thats not transparent loses about 90% of its utility, Slavin said. Attorneys Ivan Yacub and Lauren Truslow represented a woman seeking asylum in Arlington, Va., arguing she was a victim of sex trafficking and had been brutally sexually assaulted in her native country. MuckRock is a non-profit collaborative news site that gives you the tools to keep our government transparent and accountable. It really took them pointing out how serious this behavior was for me to realize that this is not ordinary behavior for other (federal) judges. Much of the behavior that was described to The Chronicle appears to fall under those definitions. The U.S. A 2017 inspector generals report that detailed the departments mishandling of sexual harassment in the civil division, a separate division of the agency, prompted a new set of agencywide policies and definitions on harassment and misconduct. Nichole Rodriguez - email: nichole.rodriguez@usdoj.gov, Jonathan W. Hitesman, Assistant Chief Immigration Judge, John Moss Federal Building This is normally due to the consultation being transferred to another agency (for example, EPA to Dept. MuckRock users can file, duplicate, track, and share public records requests He wasnt alone, they added: We concluded that he participated in conversations in which other senior managers commented on the attractiveness of female job candidates.. In the interim, Assistant Chief Immigration Judge Print Maggard will serve as the Acting Chief Immigration Judge. Any materials or objects of any kind that could be used as a weapon are prohibited. Grant issues his rulings without seeing the inside of a courtroom. Presenting information from an anonymous source occurs extremely rarely, and only when that information is considered crucially important and all other on-the-record options have been exhausted. He is still there, hearing immigrants cases but stripped of his supervisor duties. If you have an account in FOIAonline, you may access those records by . FALLS CHURCH, VA The Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) today announced the investiture of two immigration judges. Search the AILALink database for all your practice needsstatutes, regs, case law, agency guidance, publications, and more. As the woman sniffled audibly, Cassidy told her he had bonded with her over the story, as he also was born prematurely. But making the courts independent would keep the Biden administration from directly changing the system, including firing bad-actor judges. But limited available records show that at least 11 complaints have been filed about Cassidy with the Justice Department regarding his in-court conduct toward attorneys, immigrants and even another judge. EOIR is committed to ensuring fairness in all of the cases it adjudicates. 102 Petty France, London, Greater London SW1H 9AJ, GB, View All visitors to any building or facility in which an EOIR operation is located are required to comply with all relevant laws or policies governing access to those buildings or facilities. free lookups / month. Subject: RE: Freedom of Information Act Request #FOIA-2018-39532. No credit card required. For more information about those DHS offices, please see the following links: News Media/Congressional Inquiries: News media and congressional inquiries regarding the immigration court must be directed to the EOIR Communications and Legislative Affairs Division (CLAD): Communications and Legislative Affairs Division 2. But she said the Trump administration focused on different priorities namely, speeding up deportation cases and limiting immigrants ability to win asylum. Robert Print Maggard's 2021 pay is 22% higher than the average General Attorney across all agencies. Immigration attorney Sophia Genovese says it is common for judges to make inappropriate comments, and theres just no accountability for it.. The time to act is really now. Under the Trump administration, the number of complaints dismissed jumped from roughly 40% in 2015 and 2016 to 60% in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020. H|TQo0~W= cTUjVjRHPv~wp||g>9Y7uQpr}Qn{XE-FY+ J8-LXm+.:r)vhPA];H,X#ABWu0(%(@iDc0m? The leading immigration law publisher - over 50000 pages of free information! EOIR operates within a variety of settings across the country, most commonly in federal or leased buildings controlled by the General Services Administration and detention facilities operated by the Department of Homeland Security. An analysis of those records by Mendezs group, the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, showed only a handful of instances in which judges were suspended. WASHINGTON One judge made a joke about genitalia during a court proceeding and was later promoted. He also warned attorneys not to make baseless complaints designed to harass, threaten, intimidate, or retaliate against judges. 703-305-0289 (phone)PAO.EOIR@usdoj.gov. The calendars for Print Maggard and James McHenry for the month of June, 2018. Many e-mail messages are redacted in part with the text "not a responsive record." Remember that the immigration court may limit entry. Instead, the report concluded that Maggard exhibited poor judgment and should have avoided such behavior. Up to 5 Five led to counseling by Cassidys bosses on how he should conduct himself. I wanted to follow up on the following Freedom of Information Act request, copied below, and originally submitted on June 24, 2018. Cassidy is frequently a target of ad hominem attacks, threats, and unsubstantiated accusations by commenters and advocacy organizations who simply disagree with the merits of his decisions, spokesperson Kathryn Mattingly said in a statement. 0 15 maingot, anthony e. 16 170 maldonado, njeri b. What happens with this behavior is that it is so cumulative that it becomes like background noise, said Carolina Antonini, who practiced before Cassidy from the 1990s until his promotion. JugePrint was appointed as a DCIJ in November 2015. Subject: RE: Freedom of Information Act Request #2018-37357. Six of the 11 complaints resulted in no consequences, either because managers couldnt substantiate the allegations after reviewing the record or the issues raised were matters to be decided in the appeals process. As the agency begins its search for a new chief immigration judge, Assistant Chief Immigration Judge Print Maggard will stand in, according to the DOJ. Case documents are sent to and from Grants home, multiple sources familiar with the situation told The Chronicle. 8YXADK#UwGhJ:"wO ]2)!L( OE-? g4,3idh0qnjS?0 eC7b8,VE5/&LQb:aS]L/`/uss;[ z=>5ZU\yaJesz|{b:&9]W7EaW?jQ-jQzzyTf]7OF9/.j>,53)=7uG\>M}_=rz=Uk>$M[-1 rbJisgHflgo Pr)v!A`>H9)!\5F 12|l6IWjcbe+39=)|OB|>569n;`uW#v4$D=((q -niYtBhTh j/ iK26>lf@p~Jm32Vx{=.{ 8W Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations Field Office, EOIRs Programs to Fight Fraud, Abuse, and Ineffective Representation in Immigration Proceedings. Other attorneys recalled judges who minimized domestic violence while questioning asylum seekers, or suggested that married women could not be raped by their husbands. endstream endobj startxref Wr/Joseph R. SchaafChief Counsel, Administrative LawExecutive Office for Immigration Review, Subject: FOIA Tracking Number Change for consultation DOJ-2018-007740 (to DOJ-2018-007740), The FOIA consultation DOJ-2018-007740 has had its Tracking Number changed to DOJ-2018-007740. 17, 2017).pdf, Recently Disciplined Attorneys and Updated List(1).pdf, There are too many files to display on this communication. A third, a supervisor based mostly in San Francisco, commented with colleagues about the attractiveness of female job candidates, an internal investigation concluded. By Kelly Knaub (June 19, 2017, 5:19 PM EDT) -- The Executive Office for Immigration Review has sworn in 11 new immigration judges who will be hearing cases in California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, New Jersey, Texas, Utah and Virginia, the immigration agency announced on Friday. Access to case data within articles (numbers, filings, courts, nature of suit, and more. Building Access and Security Screening Process: All visitors to the John E. Moss Federal Building must undergo a security screening in the building lobby area. For information regarding procedures for practice before the immigration courts, please see the Immigration Court Practice Manual. With this administration, the attitude is, if you do something horrible in terms of misconduct, youre going to get promoted to the Board of Immigration Appeals because of the people they put up there, Slavin said of the Trump era. Michelle Mendez of the Catholic Legal Immigration Network, which provides legal representation to immigrants and helps attorneys report allegations of judicial misconduct, said lawyers face tremendous pressure not to call out judges bad behavior, even though they know ignoring it means it is likely to continue. 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