Quick Bytes
- The Supreme Court rules noncitizens can be deported if they miss hearings, even without initial proper notice.
- Campos-Chaves v. Garland allows deportation with a later notice, reversing previous decisions emphasizing complete NTAs.
- The decision contradicts several U.S. Courts of Appeals, raising concerns about due process for noncitizens.
Supreme Court’s Shift on Deportation Notices
In a significant reversal, the Supreme Court has decided that noncitizens may be deported for not attending their immigration hearings, even if they did not receive a proper initial Notice to Appear (NTA) that includes the date and time.
The case at the center of this shift is Campos-Chaves v. Garland, where the Court ruled that a subsequent notice with hearing details is sufficient for deportation in absentia. This decision moves away from the Court’s recent stance, which required a full NTA to initiate removal proceedings. The previous cases, Pereida and Niz-Chavez, mandated that an NTA must contain comprehensive information in a single document to be valid.
However, the new ruling permits deportation based on a follow-up notice, even if the original NTA was incomplete. This approach has been criticized for potentially complicating the legal process for noncitizens, especially those new to the U.S. and unfamiliar with the system, increasing the likelihood of missed court dates.
The Campos-Chavez decision has sparked concerns about the erosion of due process rights for noncitizens facing removal, as it seems to endorse a system that allows the government to bypass its own notification rules.
