Law Commons^™

It’S Time To Turn The Tide: The Supreme Court Must Moderate Its Stare Decisis Approach Before It’S Too Late For Cases Like Plyler, Sabrina Rodriguez

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

We are standing in a defining moment for the Supreme Court. Against the backdrop of the Court’s Dobbs decision, it is now clearer than ever that if the Court fails to modernize its stare decisis approach, the civil liberties we enjoy are vulnerable to be undermined beyond recognition. Scholars have previously opined that the modern Court’s application of stare decisis to overturn precedent is not a significant departure from the Court’s historical application of this doctrine and thus, the Court’s stare decisis trend is not alarming. This argument fails to appreciate that overturning precedent under selective application stare decisis factors …

Disposable Immigrants: The Reality Of Sexual Assault In Immigration Detention Centers, Valerie Gisel Zarate

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming.

The Mother Of Exiles Is Abandoning Her Children: The Systemic Failure To Protect Unaccompanied Minors Arriving At Our Borders, Rosa M. Peterson

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Unaccompanied minors arrive at the United States border every day. Many brought by the hope of finding a life lived without fear, a luxury many United States citizens take for granted. Their truths become the barriers and shackles which keep them in detention centers and unaccompanied minor facilities throughout the United States; children find their very words wielded as weapons against them in immigration court. Words often spoken to therapists in perceived confidence, during counseling sessions. This practice is a systemic failure to protect unaccompanied minors arriving at our borders who are seeking protection and help. The United States …

Judicial Deference Of The Board Of Immigration Appeals’ Regulatory Interpretations In Light Of Kisor V. Wilkie, Melissa Fullmer

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming.

A Human Rights Crisis Under Our Roof, Aglae Eufracio

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

Undocumented Domestic Workers: A Penumbra In The Workforce, Abigail A. Roman

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

It Is Time To Get Back To Basics On The Border, Donna Coltharp

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

What Recourse Do Vulnerable Immigrants Have?: Violations Of The Vawa Confidentiality Provisions And The Pursuit Of An Even Playing Field, Trevor S. Gallaway

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

Divided States Of America: Why The Right To Counsel Is Imperative For Migrant Children In Removal Proceedings, Catrina L. Guerrero

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

Not Your Average Summer Camp: Children In Immigration Detention, Cindy Izquierdo

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

America’S Second-Class Children: An Examination Of President Trump’S Immigration Policies On Migrant Children And Inquiry On Justice Through The Catholic Perspective, Gabriel Sáenz

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

Sanctuary Cities And The Trump Administration: The Practical Limits Of Federal Power, Joshua W. Dansby

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

On January 25, 2017, President Donald J. Trump signed an executive order with the supposed purpose of enhancing public safety of the interior of the United States. Part of the Administration’s plan includes threatening “sanctuary jurisdictions,” also known as “sanctuary cities,” with the loss of federal funds for failing to comply with federal law, specifically 8 U.S.C. § 1373.

There are several problems with this plan: (1) there is no solid definition for what makes a city a “sanctuary;” (2) if we accept the Administration’s allusion that a sanctuary jurisdiction is one that “willfully” refuses to comply with 8 U.S.C. …

Effects Of Senate Bill 4 On Wage-Theft: Why All Workers Are At Risk In Low-Income Occupations, Daniella Salas-Chacon

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming

Undocumented Citizens Of The United States: The Repercussions Of Denying Birth Certificates, Anna L. Lichtenberger

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

Finality Of A Conviction: A Noncitizen's Right To Procedural Due Process, Daniela Mondragon

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming

Immigrating While Trans: The Disproportionate Impact Of The Prostitution Ground Of Inadmissibility And Other Provisions Of The Immigration And Nationality Act On Transgender Women, Luis Medina

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

Judge Posner's Road Map For Convention Against Torture Claims When Central American Governments Cannot Protect Citizens Against Gang Violence, Steven H. Schulman

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

Veterans Banished: The Fight To Bring Them Home, Alejandra Martinez

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

The Unconstitutional Application Of Apprehension And Detention Laws: Section 236(C) Of The Immigration And Nationality Act, Rigoberto Ledesma

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Abstract forthcoming.

Immigrants For Sale: Corporate America Puts A Price Tag On Sexual Abuse., Bessie Muñoz

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Current immigration law and the privatization of immigration detention centers have made it highly likely that immigrants will be detained. Immigrants will continue to migrate to the United States, and if the immigration policies require detention, the government needs to enforce the compliance of the Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA) standards, especially in private detention centers. Illegal immigration is not to be condoned, but immigrants still retain the human right to be treated with dignity, free from sexual violence. There are three different types of immigration detention facilities, but the ones owned by private government contractors do not have to …

Safety Over Semantics: The Case For Statutory Protection For Domestic Violence Asylum Applicants., Spencer Kyle

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Women and children make up the vast majority of the world’s refugee population. However, in the United States, the majority of successful applicants are men. Asylum seekers who assert claims of domestic violence are largely unsuccessful. The current immigration laws do not take gender into account when determining societal factors for obtaining asylum. People often misinterpret most foreign domestic violence allegations as differences of religion or cultural practices. Many believe domestic violence against women is solely a private issue and not the product of a political or social system designed to make women inferior to men. This dichotomy allows people …

Muslims Denied: How The Uscis Uses A Formerly Secret Program To Delay And Reject Naturalization Applications From Muslims And Other Minorities., Deepak Amrik Singh Ahluwalia

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

The Controlled Application Review and Resolution Program (CARRP) unduly burdens applicants of the United States naturalization process and creates the nearly impossible task of erasing any national security concern. Minorities, especially minorities of the Muslim faith, are subjected to unfair investigation and adjudication of their naturalization applications. Congress allegedly eradicated discrimination from the naturalization process with the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (INA). The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), the agency in charge of overseeing lawful immigration to the United States, implemented CARRP in 2008 to establish a policy for handling naturalization cases which might be perceived …

On Behalf Of An Ungrateful Nation: Military Naturalization, Aggravated Felonies And The Good Moral Character Requirement., B. Ryan Byrd

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

In the United States military, it is an aggravated felony for naturalization purposes to fraudulently enlist in the military and alter identity documents. This denotation under these circumstances does not require violence, the use of a weapon, or a formal conviction in a court of law. Acts with this designation are statutory permanent bars to citizenship because their presence in an applicant’s record prevents a finding of good moral character, one of the requirements for naturalization. Alternatively, the presence of prior crimes in a legal permanent resident’s background are not serious enough to prevent enlistment in the military. Over 31,000 …

Driving Down The Wrong Road: The Fifth Circuit's Definition Of Unauthorized Use Of A Motor Vehicle As A Crime Of Violence In The Immigration Context., Heather Harrison Volik

St. Mary's Law Journal

Individuals who are not United States citizens and participate in violent or severe criminal activity are likely to be deported and become inadmissible for life. But noncitizens can also be deported for minor criminal activity which does not cause harm or serious damage. In such cases, deportation is an extreme punishment out of proportion to the offense. Unauthorized use of a motor vehicle (UUMV) is an example of a crime which can be committed without serious harm or damage. The Fifth Circuit regularly sustains decisions of lifetime reentry ban for noncitizens convicted of UUMV. Under immigration law, “aliens” who are …

The Wrong Solution: An Examination Of Present Bush's Proposed Temporary Worker Program., Tory A. Cronin

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

In 2004, President George Bush offered a new proposal to provide temporary work permits to undocumented immigrants. His proposal, however, falls short of his goals to create an immigration system which serves the American economy and reflects the American Dream. This temporary worker program would provide labor for positions which Americans are not filling currently. For some reason, Americans seem averse to holding certain jobs even though these jobs are readily available. President Bush’s proposal, which he asked Congress to draft, alleviates pressure on American employers who wish to fill low-demand jobs with foreign laborers. The proposal accomplishes this by …

Sentenced To Purgatory: The Indefinite Detention Of Mariel Cubans, Yvette M. Mastin

The Scholar: St. Mary's Law Review on Race and Social Justice

Indefinite detention of Cuban immigrants is unconstitutional. Immigrants detained in American jails are being treated the same as individuals serving criminal sentences or awaiting disposition of their cases. Congress should, therefore, create a mandatory and uniform system of procedural due process. The system should be modeled after the procedural due process system established by the Kansas Legislature in the Kansas Sexually Violent Predator Act of 1994.  Although the U.S. Supreme Court has yet to rule on the indefinite detention of the Mariel Cubans, lower courts have held that the indefinite detention of Mariel Cubans does not violate the Constitution. Nonetheless, …

America's Preoccupation With Ethics In Government Essay., Vincent R. Johnson

St. Mary's Law Journal

Many Americans today expect that the law can, should, and will be used to ensure a level playing field in public life. Americans expect the law to eliminate, insofar as possible, any unfair advantage that might be gained through the use of special connections to those who exercise the power of government. There are numerous rules applicable to judges, lawyers, and public officials that each seek to promote equal treatment for all persons by limiting the ability of persons to use special connections and privileged relationships to gain an advantage in public affairs. There were two threads of development in …

Immigration Reform: Seeking The Right Reasons., Lamar Smith, Edward R. Grant

St. Mary's Law Journal

The legacy of immigration to the United States permeates the debate over current immigration policy. Because our self-definition as a nation is at stake in this debate, the issue of immigration arouses our deepest sentiments regarding the communities in which we live. We do not need to search far back in our history to find examples of imprudent law-making. Both the 1924 and 1925 immigration laws were motivated in large part by purposes which eventually undermined the principles on which they rested. These acts serve as prime examples of how employing erroneous reasons to enact even well-intentioned laws can be …

Distinguishing Fong Yue Ting: Why The Inclusion Of Perjury As An Aggravated Felony Subjecting Legal Aliens To Deportation Under The Antiterrorism And Effective Death Penalty Act Violates The Eighth Amendment Comment., Gregory L. Ryan

St. Mary's Law Journal

Responding to the terrorist bombing in Oklahoma City, Congress spent several months researching and discussing the best ways to strengthen the United States’ ability to deter and punish terrorism. In 1996, Congress sent a bill to the President designed to make the country safer, and President Clinton signed the bill into law: The Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA). The AEDPA mandates a foreign national convicted of perjury be deported. Tucked away in the middle of the AEDPA, strict sanctions are imposed on noncitizens who commit perjury or subordination of perjury. In an attempt to strengthen the …

A Tortured Construction: The Illegal Immigration Reform And Immigrant Responsibility Act's Express Bar Denying Criminal Aliens Withholding Of Deportation Defies The Principles Of International Law Comment., Bobbie Marie Guerra

St. Mary's Law Journal

The United States has never fully complied with international agreements concerning refugee’s rights to not be returned to a country where he or she faces certain threats of torture. This lack of compliance by the United States is exacerbated by two conflicting interests: the growing insistence on keeping aliens outside the nation’s borders and protecting international refugees who endure gross violations of their human rights. The recent amendments to the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) provide a contemporary example of the volatility and inconsistency of the United States’ immigration policy. In April 1996, Congress enacted the Antiterrorism and Effective Death …