From Stop The Deportations:
"Today Denver Immigration Judge Mimi Tsankov halted the deportation of Sujey Pando and scheduled a new hearing to consider an application based on her marriage to her U.S. citizen wife, Violeta Pando.
Violeta and Sujey Pando married in Iowa, November 15, 2010.
The Judge, citing a previous case and the "fluidity" of the national situation, refused to order Sujey Pando deported, despite the supposed finality of today's hearing. A near hearing was ordered for January, 2012.
Because today's hearing was intended to be a final decision day on Sujey's deportation, the judge's action was unusual; she spent 45 minutes methodically considering the procedural posture of the case. In the end, the Judge set aside the intended purpose of the hearing, citing developments including the Attorney General's intervention in a similar case in May (Matter of Dorman) and noted that the issues involved in this case existed in a context that was "fluid" and "in a state of flux."
This is almost certainly a direct result of the new policies on deportation priorities issued by the the Obama Administration and Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano just days ago. That new policy ordered a review of some 300,000 deportation cases to make sure that cases not involving illegalities, and cases which involve families being broken apart, are given lowest priority or suspended altogether.
The Judge referred to events that occurred as recent as yesterday as having an impact on how to proceed. Yesterday, the DHS Secretary Napolitano ordered a review of all pending deportation cases for possible closure, including those involving LGBT families.
Update: Local video and article.
In another, related case three days ago, as reported by the San Francisco Chronicle:
"On Tuesday, an immigration judge, citing administration policy, closed the deportation case of Raul Sinense, a Filipino national married to a U.S. citizen, Peter Gee, in Pasadena in 2008, when California briefly allowed same-sex marriages. The couple resides in Oakland and their case is among the first in which a judge closed removal proceedings in a case involving the Defense of Marriage Act."
None of these actions is the result of Congress legislating a rational immigration policy. Credit where credit is due. While we don't know exactly how the new policy will be implemented over the course of months and years, the first signs are how it is playing out are very encouraging.
If this is what the Obama administration had in mind -- in what I can only interpret as a big FU to Congress -- then two and a half cheers to the President (the other 1/2 reserved for not doing it months or years ago, in sadness for all those spouses, students, parents and children who have been deported since January, 2009).
Update: On How this relates to Makk and Wells' situation:
The other case that has gotten national prominence lately is that of John Makk and Bradford Wells.
Unfortunately, the new administration policies do not apply to them because Makk is not facing a deporation order:
Because Makk remains in legal status until at least Aug. 25, and has not yet received a formal deportation order, the new administration policy does not yet apply to him; the policy only applies to people who already have been ordered to leave.
The couple is adamant that Makk should not be forced to become undocumented for the first time in order to receive relief under the new policy.
"Anthony and I have worked tirelessly for the entire length of our relationship to make sure that he has been in legal status," Wells said. "Being legal has been important to us or 19 years, and I think we should be rewarded for remaining in legal status and not be treated the same as people who have no regard for the law, because that would give people no motivation to do the right thing."
Still, Wells said the new policy "is a really big step in that the government is showing compassion to gay and lesbian families."
Makk is caught in a Catch-22. It seems that he may have to become illegal to stay in this country with his spouse. To be threatened with deportation in order to avail himself of the administration's new policies!
(It's possible that a final adminstrative appeal of Makk's rejection for a green card could be granted, but that seems unlikely. Their only option beyond that is to file their own DOMA court case (since Makk's application for a green card denial letter specifically cited DOMA as the reason) and hope for a judge that will grant a stay of deportation.)
Update: Who'd of Thunk?
House Republicans on Friday called President Obama's changes to the deportation policy a "blatant attempt" to provide amnesty to illegal immigrants.
Daily Beast