Lawyers Committee
Supreme Court Allows Secret Deportation Hearings To Stand
Fri May 30 17:50:34 2003
208.152.73.24

Supreme Court Allows Secret Deportation Hearings To Stand
http://www.alternet.org/story.html?StoryID=16039

By Lawyers Committee for Human Rights
May 29, 2003

NEW YORK - The Supreme Court will not review the constitutionality of a post 9/11 Justice Department policy that allows secret deportation proceedings for non-citizens who are deemed "special interest" cases by the Attorney General. The case, North Jersey Media Group v. Ashcroft, was on appeal from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.

The issue at the heart of the case was a policy set out in a September 21, 2001 Memorandum from Chief Immigration Judge Michael Creppy. The Memorandum instructed immigration judges to bar access by the public, the press, and family members to immigration courtrooms in cases of "special interest" to the Attorney General. The majority of individuals subject to this policy were not accused of any criminal activity or involvement with terrorism. Most of the cases involved ordinary civil immigration violations such as expired visas.

"The Supreme Court's function as a check on executive power is vital to the protection of constitutional liberties," said Rebecca Thornton, a staff attorney with the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights. "There has been very little oversight of the Administration's actions since 9/11. The Supreme Court's allowing the blanket policy of secret deportations to stand is a blow to our system of checks and balances. At a minimum, the executive branch's concerns about national security could have been safeguarded by allowing immigration judges to decide on a case-by-case basis whether particular hearings needed to be closed."

When the deportation policy was originally challenged in federal court by media and other groups, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Cincinnati said that "democracies die behind closed doors," and held that the blanket policy was unconstitutional. In a separate case challenging the same policy, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit in Philadelphia ruled 2-1 in favor of the government. The majority upheld the secret hearings policy because it found no constitutional right of access by the press to deportation hearings, especially in cases that implicate national security, as the government has alleged all so-called "special interest" cases do. These rulings created a conflict between the Third and Sixth Circuits; the ACLU filed a petition seeking the Supreme Court's review of the case.

The media groups challenged the policy claiming a First Amendment right to attend the hearings. But the policy also raises concerns about the due process rights of immigrants. Pursuant to the policy, "special interest" cases were removed from the docket, a public schedule of cases, denying lawyers access to information about a client's case. In these complex proceedings, where frequently an individual's liberty is at stake, access to a lawyer is essential.

Since 1978, the Lawyers Committee for Human Rights has worked in the U.S. and abroad to create a secure and humane world by advancing justice and human dignity. We support human rights activists who fight for basic freedoms and peaceful change at the local level; protect refugees in flight from persecution and repression; promote fair economic practices by creating safeguards for workers' rights; and help build a strong international system of justice and accountability for the worst human rights crimes.
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