ICE failed to deliver immigration court summonses to more than 80% of illegal immigrants caught and released under the Biden administration’s “parole” program just before the end of the Title 42 pandemic border policy, according to new statistics the government submitted to a federal judge.
The migrants in question were released on “parole” and given 60 days to check in.
More than 40% of the migrants never checked in at all. Of the rest, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement failed to issue a Notice to Appear — the immigration summons — in more than two-thirds of the cases.
That works out to a success rate of less than 20% for the test population, and it underscores the struggles the administration will have with the broader population of illegal immigrants caught and released since President Biden took office.
“One can only imagine how many of the 2 million plus other people who have been released into the United States have simply disappeared,” said Andrew “Art” Arthur, a former immigration judge and longtime congressional staffer who is now a resident legal fellow at the Center for Immigration Studies.
In the court filings, officials said some of the migrants may still check in late. Officials also explained ICE’s failure to issue summonses as the result of “limited agency resources.”
The officials said they aren’t yet sure whether they’ll try to punish the rule breakers, though they suggested some interest in the idea.
“DHS maintains its commitment that individuals have an obligation to comply with requirements imposed by DHS, and ICE is prepared to take such actions as may be required to ensure that individuals who were released pending the initiation of their immigration court proceedings comply with the terms of their release,” Sarah B. Fabian, a Justice Department lawyer, told the judge.
That could include arrests, detention or attempts to deport the migrants, said Daniel A. Bible, deputy executive associate director at ICE.
The migrants were among those caught in the days leading up to the May 11 termination of the Title 42 pandemic border expulsion authority. Expecting an overwhelming rush at the border, the Border Patrol announced it would use “parole” to catch and release people faster, rather than fully processing them and issuing them court summonses.
The 2,572 in question were processed for parole before Title 42 ended but weren’t released until after the expiration.
The Washington Times was the first to reveal the releases.
Judge Wetherell had issued a ruling halting parole. He said the releases violated his order and he threatened to hold the administration in contempt. He eventually decided against that step, saying that while he considered the releases a violation, his order was ambiguous enough that he wouldn’t issue sanctions.
But he did demand an accounting of those that were released and whether they complied with the conditions governing parole — including a requirement that they checked in with ICE within 60 days of their release.
ICE said that of the 2,572 released, 1,507 checked in by July 10, which was the deadline. A check-in could include showing up in person, logging into the online system or sending a letter.
Of the 1,507, just 464 were issued a Notice to Appear, the summons for immigration court.
That means 2,108 people — 82% of the catch-and-release population — still haven’t been entered into the immigration court docket.
Mr. Arthur said that’s particularly worrying given that a judge was watching and ICE should have been doing everything it could to track down these migrants.
“This was one situation in which DHS should have done everything to get it right, and even then they’re not,” he said. “It’s a limited population of people with significant judicial interest that they knew they were going to have to answer for, and even then their efforts are extremely wanting.”
He also said the low compliance rate bodes poorly for the government’s hopes of corralling the rest of the 2 million unauthorized migrants that have been caught and released during the Biden administration.
“This underscores the Biden administration’s disregard for the laws Congress has written,” he said.
The court filing also provided a striking look at who was in the catch-and-release population and where they were headed.
ICE has 24 regions or “Areas of Responsibility” and the New York City one was the top destination, with 264 of the migrants checking in there. Chicago was second with 158, followed by Boston with 137.
Venezuelans led the way with 559 migrants in the paroled population. Colombians were next with 429, and Peruvians were third with 319. But there were also 43 from China, 20 from Uzbekistan, 17 from Nepal, six from Afghanistan and four from Azerbaijan.
Mr. Arthur said the fact that Venezuelans were so prevalent exposes a hole in the Biden administration’s policies.
Under a special pathway created by Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas, Venezuelans who showed up at the border without scheduling their arrival were supposed to be quickly turned back — an enticement to come through regular border crossings. But the numbers show the administration was still welcoming large numbers who didn’t follow those rules.
The data also showed a surprising number of Mexican migrants who earned parole: Some 170 Mexican nationals were listed as caught and released, most of them having come as part of family units.
More broadly, of the 2,572 migrants, 1,246 came as part of families and 1,325 came as single adults. One migrant, from Mexico, was listed as an unaccompanied child.