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Recommendations
To the US Congress
• Amend US immigration law to better protect family unity:
o Allow for family ties and other positive factors to be factored into any
deportation decision, including in cases involving non-citizens with prior
criminal convictions.
o Allow non-citizens whose deportations under existing law bar them from
returning to the United States to apply for waivers of these bars based on
evidence of strong ties to US citizen or permanent resident family members.
• Amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to impose only civil penalties, not
criminal penalties, on illegal entry and illegal reentry. At a minimum, restore the
prior version of the statute—making illegal reentry punishable by up to 2 years in
federal prison, instead of 20—and prohibit the prosecution of asylum seekers.
• Repeal or amend authorization for Operation Streamline and other programs that
facilitate mass prosecutions and undercut the due process rights of those charged
with illegal entry offenses.
To the US Department of Justice and US Attorneys
• Discontinue Operation Streamline and similar programs.
• Enact national guidelines recommending against prosecution of illegal entry and
reentry where the migrant has close family ties or fears violence and persecution
abroad.
• Support changes to the Sentencing Guidelines to ensure that the most severe
sentences are imposed on those with convictions for serious, violent felonies.
To US Customs and Border Protection (CBP)
• Ensure that all asylum seekers are able to begin the process to apply for asylum
when they are first apprehended by CBP personnel.
• Refer non-citizens for criminal prosecution only when they have recent convictions
for serious, violent felonies.
• Discontinue Operation Streamline and similar programs.
7 HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH | MAY 2013