Holly Cooper Comments on Immigration Policy for Law360

Holly S. Cooper, lecturer and staff attorney with the UC Davis School of Law Immigration Law Clinic, commented for Law360 on an alleged hunger strike by women held at an immigration detention facility in Texas. The strike, which has been denied by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, reportedly was conducted in protest of the detention of asylum seekers with a credible fear of persecution, which is contrary to longstanding ICE policy.

Cooper confirmed that the agency's policy previously had been that newly arrived immigrants who have shown a credible fear of persecution and who are considered neither dangerous nor a flight risk should generally be paroled, citing a 2009 ICE memo. She also said that ICE's apparent change in policy "absolutely" was related to the recent increase in border crossings by unaccompanied minors and other immigrants.

Holly Cooper is a Lecturer and serves as staff attorney at the UC Davis Immigration Law Clinic. Her areas of specialty include immigration law and detained immigrants' rights.

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