* The Washington Post is reporting that a recent audit of the FBI system for checking the names of immigrant applicants found significant problems with the Bureau’s process, claiming that it has “serious deficiencies.” According to the Post:
The bureau’s name checks have fallen victim to “outdated and inefficient technology” as well as inadequately trained employees, according to a report issued yesterday by the Justice Department inspector general.
- Standing FIRM recently posted a YouTube Video documenting the effects of last month’s raid on an immigrant community in Postville, Iowa. Many local residents are interviewed.
- A posting on DREAM ACT discusses a number of stories of young immigrant students, including one valedictorian, who were recently deported. According to the the blog, passage of the federal Dream Act, which died in Congress last year, would have allowed them to graduate and remain in the country.
- A June 11 New York Times Editorial claims the U.S. government has failed in its responsibility to ensure that its immigrant detention facilities are safe and secure. The editorial argues:
The government should be rushing to improve the oversight and care in its sprawling detention system to protect all detainees. Instead, the official reaction has been slow and defensive, promised improvements are piecemeal, and criticism of the system is making immigration hard-liners indignant.
* According to ImmigrationProf Blog, Professor Margo Schlanger is creating a database of original court documents in civil rights cases. The database, named Civil Rights Litigation Clearing House, has a category for immigration cases. The information is all publicly available and can be accessed here.