Rep. Gwen Moore introduces bill to shield immigrant crime victims from deportation
U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore is continuing her push to shield from deportation immigrants who are victims or witnesses of crime and trafficking.
Fueled by two recent local stories — one about a former Milwaukee teacher's aide who had to self-deport, the other about an undocumented immigrant believed to be framed for a crime he didn't commit — Moore introduced legislation that would prevent the deportation of others like them.
Moore, a Democrat, introduced the bill in the U.S. House of Representatives on July 29 with co-sponsor Rep. Jimmy Panetta of California, also a Democrat. The text of the bill was not immediately available.
"The legislation aims to reduce barriers that prevent survivors from seeking justice and ensure they are not penalized for coming forward," Moore and Panetta said in a statement.
In the Republican-controlled U.S. Congress, the bill is unlikely to pass. But it calls attention to a Trump administration policy change that has played a role in two prominent local immigration cases in recent months.
Under current law, an immigrant who has received a T or a U visa is protected from deportation, can receive a work permit and can apply for a green card, or legal permanent residency. A Biden-era policy extended the deportation protection to people who had applied for, but had not yet been granted, those visas. (A T visa refers to victims of trafficking; a U visa refers to victims of certain crimes who have suffered physical or mental abuse.)
The administration's new guidance says that that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents should consult with the agency's legal advisors when those cases arise. The Trump administration seems to detaining and deporting immigrants regardless of whether they have open but not-yet-granted T or U visa petitions, lawmakers say.
Milwaukee teacher's aide Yessenia Ruano, who was forced by ICE in June to return to El Salvador despite her pending T visa case, is among those who were affected by the policy change.
Also affected is Ramón Morales-Reyes, a Milwaukee man who was arrested by federal agents and faces potential deportation. He had a pending U visa application after he cooperated with police and testified against a man charged with robbing and assaulting him.
Prosecutors say Morales-Reyes was framed and wrongly accused of mailing a threat to shoot President Donald Trump. The suspect in the robbery case, Demetric Scott, is now charged with sending the fake threat as well.
An immigration judge will decide whether Morales-Reyes should be deported.
The bill follows a letter Moore authored in mid-July, signed by 11 other congressional Democrats, urging ICE not to deport applicants for T and U visas, and to release those currently detained.
What to know about Rep. Gwen Moore's bill for immigrant crime victim protections
According to Moore, the new bill would:
- Prevent the detention and deportation of eligible visa applicants before a decision is made in the case.
- Lift "arbitrary" caps on U visas for crime victims.
- Establish a statutory timeline for issuing work permits.
The federal government gives out a maximum of 10,000 U visas each year. It has hit that cap every year since 2010. Five thousand T visas are given out each year, although that has never been reached because the criteria is particularly strict.
Both visas require victims to cooperate with law enforcement as witnesses in the investigations into the people who committed the crimes.
“By subjecting these vulnerable individuals to immigration enforcement, the Trump administration is helping create a two-tiered justice system that empowers criminal and discourages certain victims from coming forward," Moore said in a statement. "Congress created these visas as a tool to make our communities safer and support the flow of critical information during criminal investigations. This legislation creates stronger T and U visa protections, helping victims and law enforcement."
A White House spokeswoman would only issue a statement on the president's enforcement priorities.
“The Trump Administration’s top deportation priorities are the countless violent criminal illegal aliens that Joe Biden let into the country through his wide-open Southern Border," Deputy Press Secretary Abigail Jackson said in a statement.
Representatives from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Sophie Carson is a general assignment reporter who reports on religion and faith, immigrants and refugees and more. Contact her at scarson@gannett.com or 920-323-5758.