New Year Resolutions For Immigration Officials

Last week, a client died unexpectedly, and two government

officials tasked with administering the immigration laws

retired after long careers of honorable service.

The client, a renaissance man of many talents, was remembered by

a throng of mourners representing a wide cross-section of the

community -- academia, local government, the arts, family and

friends. I saw him two weeks before he died. He was

joyful because his long-awaited administrative appeal had finally

produced a favorable decision and a remand. We both had

truly expected that he'd soon enjoy immigration

justice after many years of waiting. His death

underscored the truth of the maxim that justice delayed is justice

denied.

The retiring immigration officials represented

an increasingly rare genus of civil servant. I

wrote a farewell note to one in words that could have applied

equally to both: "You have always been my model of the

superlative public official – courteous, helpful,

responsive, knowledgeable and friendly."

Neither of these officers were pushovers. Both understood

the immigration laws, applied them fairly, knew how to listen,

kept an open mind, and took time to read an application

for an immigration benefit carefully to identify the strengths and

weaknesses of the case. They were not afraid to reach a

decision within a reasonable period of time, or to reconsider if

new evidence or additional legal arguments were offered. Most

of all, they reflected a tradition of even-handedness and timely

justice best reflected in a memorandum from Durwood Powell, Jr., a

long-retired Regional Commissioner of the legacy agency,

Immigration and Naturalization Service.

Sad to say, however, too many of today's breed of

immigration official display a different set of priorities.

Haunted by fear that he or she will be second-guessed and reprimanded for granting an

immigration benefit to an underserving or possibly dangerous

applicant, officers are wary and chary of saying

"yes." They tend to know the fine points of civil

service rules governing their employee benefits, but are less

zealous in mastering the admittedly complex immigration laws or

publishing regulations that would help the public understand the

law. Speed of decision-making is espoused as an important

value, but too often honored more in the breach than the

observance. Many look for ways to say "no" even if

the effort at times produces specious reasoning. Others build

new hierarchies of power, whether authorized by...

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