Proposed DOJ Rule Robs Asylum-Seeking Children of Due Process
On Thursday, October 22, 2020, the Young Center submitted a public comment opposing a proposed rule entitled "Procedures for Asylum and Withholding of Removal," published on September 23, 2020, by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ).
The proposed rule threatens the due process rights of children seeking asylum and undermines their ability to seek asylum protections by requiring immigration judges to adjudicate asylum cases in a limited timeframe, with little discretion to grant continuances, and allowing judges to exclude country conditions evidence from non-government sources, which many children introduce to support their claims for asylum.
By arbitrarily limiting the time in which asylum-seeking children can prepare their asylum cases, and by creating unfair evidentiary standards that discourage an immigration judge from considering relevant evidence which children often rely on to support their asylum claims, the proposed rule is an assault on children's due process rights. It also ignores the profound reality that the factual predicates that support asylum also act as burdens or barriers to demonstrating eligibility for that relief. U.S. law recognizes the need to afford children's right to seek asylum greater protections in light of their unique needs and vulnerabilities. The proposed rule contravenes this principle and is antithetical to the consideration of the best interests of children.