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U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has launched a new operation to send court documents to unauthorized migrants who were not processed for deportation after crossing the U.S.-Mexico border this year.
The documents include “notices to appear,” which instruct migrants to attend court hearings before U.S. immigration judges who will determine if they can remain in the country or will be deported. The operation aims to expedite deportation proceedings for unauthorized migrants.
U.S. Customs and Border Patrol made more than 1.7 millions apprehensions at the U.S.-Mexico border during fiscal year 2021. As of September, CBP had released over 107,000 migrants with notices to report rather than formal notices to appear in court.
Under the new operation, ICE will be able to issue more notices to appear and ensure that migrants comply with them. However, sending notices to appear to incorrect or outdated addresses could lead immigration judges to order the deportation of migrants who miss their court dates because they were never aware of them in the first place.