If the judge decides you are eligible for a bond, he or she will consider two things:
- whether you are likely to attend your next hearing; and
- whether you are a danger to the community.
To prove that you are likely to attend your next hearing, the judge will want to know if you have a way to fight your case, e.g., married to a U.S. citizen spouse who will petition for you. You should have letters from friends or family members with legal status, telling the judge how long the person has known you, why you are a good and moral person, and where you will be living when released. You should also provide any evidence supporting your path to legal status. A draft of the application would be ideal. If you have other family in the U.S., such as children who were born here, it helps to have copies of their birth certificates or immigration papers.
If you have any municipal convictions that might make you seem dangerous, such as domestic violence or a DUI, it is very important to present the judge with any proof that you will not commit such crimes in the future. For example, if you have certificates showing that
you completed alcohol, drug, or anger management classes, you should present these at your bond hearing
There is no doubt in anyone’s mind that the American immigration system is broken. Where most of the controversy lies is over what the flaws are, and how to fix them. This topic always ends up falling directly on party lines, and causing a ideological debate between democrats and republicans. Let’s step back, and examine it from an objective lens.
What are the flaws of our system?
The biggest flaws in the American immigration system stem mainly from the question of how to deal with the immigrants who come to this country, and how to regulate how comes and how they do so. Democrats generally agree that out nation needs immigration to enhance our culture and economy. It also helps our demographics as immigrants typically have more children and historically the children more readily join our society. Whereas republicans usually feel we have too much immigration, we need to close the border, and prevent immigration (most only want to stop illegal immigration but some want to stop it all together) until we have figured out how to accommodate the ones that are already here.
Our system doesn’t properly address the future flow of immigrants. Most immigrants that want to come to the U.S. can’t do so legally without waiting many years. We have no solution in place to address undocumented immigrants. Our immigration courts are understaffed, overwhelmed, and mismanaged. This causes additional spending in detention and deportation (removal) proceedings. We are spending more because our government has yet to introduce a viable solution.
How do we fix them?
This is the big question. Both parties have their perspective.
Republicans claim we need to close the border in the name of national security. Only then do we try to figure out how to accommodate the undocumented immigrants (they typically refer to them as illegals) who are already in the nation. Some republicans feel that if we are unable to help them quickly, we need to send them back to their country of origin in order to relieve pressure on the nation as a whole. The democrats disagree, arguing we need to protect the immigrants who are already here by helping them achieve legal status and ultimately citizenship.
We do need to control the flow of undocumented immigrants, I have no problem with border security or visa reform. But we have to provide a path to citizenship (or just legal status) for the over 11.5 million immigrants here without permission. We also have to address the problem of future flow. It makes no sense to fix the problem today only to perpetuate it 20 years from now. That means providing a legal way for those that want to come to the U.S. to be able to do so legally. We must reform our courts by allowing Immigration Judges to have discretion. We must reform our detention centers by allowing them to also exercise discretion and allow alternative forms of detention like immigration bonds or ankle monitors.
What this nation needs is a comprehensive reform of the immigration system, agreed upon by both parties, but also developed by both parties.
Free Resources Available for You
If you face an immigration challenge we have some valuable resources for you:
- Do You Qualify for Legal Status? If you aren’t legal in the U.S. you owe it to yourself to find out if you can get legal status. Select the link, answer the questions, and find out for FREE.
- Do You Need an Immigration Attorney? You Might Not I will explain when you need an immigration attorney. Not every needs one. I will also explain the benefits of hiring one in any immigration challenge.
- 7 Critical Questions to ask Before Hiring an Immigration Attorney If you have decided that you need an immigration attorney, how do you make sure you hire a good one? I explain to you the questions you need to ask before you hire your immigration attorney.
- An Immigrant’s Guide to Municipal Court Here I discuss what happens if you get arrested by Immigration Customs Enforcement, what you need to know to get out of custody, and what to expect if you are placed in removal hearings. I also explain the municipal court process and how a municipal court matter can result in your being placed into removal proceedings.
If you have immigration questions, we have answers. You can,
- Call our knowledgeable staff at 888-695-6169;
- Fill out our contact us form on this page; or
- Select our live chat feature to speak to someone right away.
We help immigrants, one petition at a time.
