Democratic lawmakers slam the lack of attorney access for asylum seekers in Border Patrol custody

WASHINGTON (AP) — Dozens of Democratic members of Congress asked the Biden administration Tuesday to end expedited screening of asylum seekers in Border Patrol custody, calling it a “rushed practice” that has allowed little access to legal counsel. As the administration prepared to launch speedy screenings at Border Patrol holding facilities this spring , authorities pledged access to counsel would be a key difference from a Trump-era version of the policy. So far, that promise appears unfulfilled. A coterie of involved attorneys estimated that perhaps 100 migrants secured formal representation in the first three months of the policy, The Associated Press reported last month, and only hundreds more have received informal advice through one-time phone calls ahead of the expedited screenings. That represents a mere fraction of the thousands of expedited screenings since early April, though authorities have not provided a precise count. ADVERTISEMENT The letter to the Homeland Security and Justice Departments, signed by 13 senators and 53 members of the House of Representatives, said conducting the “credible fear” interviews as little as 24 hours after arrival in a holding facility was “inherently problematic,” especially without access to counsel. OTHER NEWS FILE - Migrants are escorted by a U.S. Army soldier after entering into El Paso, Texas from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico to be processed by immigration authorities, May 10, 2023. The Pentagon is pulling 1,100 active duty troops from the U.S.-Mexico border it deployed earlier this year as the government prepares for the end of asylum restrictions linked to the pandemic. (AP Photo/Andres Leighton, File) The Pentagon is pulling 1,100 troops from the US-Mexico border mission FILE - A man from Colombia holds his son as he waits to apply for asylum after crossing the border from Mexico, Tuesday, July 11, 2023, near Yuma, Ariz. Immigration advocates may file a lawsuit alleging that an online appointment system at border crossings fails to meet U.S. obligations to make asylum available to people fleeing persecution, the latest legal challenge to the Biden administration's border policies. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File) As illegal crossings drop, the legal challenges over Biden’s US-Mexico border policies grow FILE - A view of the exterior of the Royal Courts of Justice, which houses the High Court, in London, on Wednesday, Oct. 3, 2012. Britain's government acted unlawfully when it routinely housed newly arrived unaccompanied child asylum seekers in hotels, the High Court ruled Thursday, July 27, 2023. A child protection charity brought legal action against Britain’s Home Office and local authorities in Kent, on England’s southern coast, over their treatment of unaccompanied migrant children. (AP Photo/Sang Tan, File) UK government’s routine housing of unaccompanied child migrants in hotels ruled unlawful “Affording people fair adjudication — including adequate time to obtain evidence, prepare one’s case, and obtain and work with counsel — is particularly key for individuals fleeing life-threatening harm or torture,” the letter states. Those signing include Alex Padilla of California, chair of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration, Citizenship, and Border Safety, Bob Menendez of New Jersey, chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and Rep. Nanette Barragán of California, chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. The Homeland Security Department said it has taken significant steps to ensure a “safe and efficient” process for asylum seekers that includes access to phone booths for consultations with legal counsel and others. Also Tuesday, the National Immigrant Justice Center said it would no longer serve asylum seekers in Border Patrol custody “after more than two months attempting to overcome obstruction by the Biden administration that made it impossible to provide meaningful legal information and representation.” The group says it has represented about 30 people under the new policy. ADVERTISEMENT The administration ramped up the speedy screenings as it ended pandemic-related asylum restrictions, known as Title 42 authority, and introduced new rules that make it far more difficult for people to seek asylum without applying online outside the U.S. or first seeking protection in a country they pass through. The percentage of people who passed asylum screenings fell to 60% during the first half of July, after the fast-track process picked up, down from 77% the second half of March, just before it began. The administration has faced criticism from immigration advocates that the new rules ignore obligations under U.S. and international law to provide asylum and from those backing restrictions who say authorities are acting too generously through the online appointment system, which admits up to 1,450 people a day, and parole for up to 30,000 a month from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua and Venezuela. For more information, visit us at https://www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com/.