German homeschool family can stay in U.S.
A victory for the Romeike family, a loss for consistent enforcement of immigration laws.
Yesterday we reported that the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the appeal from the Romeike family, which was seeking asylum in the U.S. due to Germany’s ban on homeschooling. The parents risked fines, imprisonment and loss of custody of their children if they returned and failed to send the children to public school.
After years of fighting the asylum request and seeking deportation, today DHS announced that it was granting an indefinite deferment of deportation.
HSLDA, which represented the Romeikes, posted the following announcement:
The Department of Homeland Security verbally informed Home School Legal Defense Association that the Romeike family is being granted indefinite deferred action status. The Department told HSLDA that this meant the order of removal would not be acted on and that the Romeikes could stay
Why the DHS change in position? Two possible theories.
First, the case generated enormous publicity, particularly yesterday. HSLDA noted in its announcement:
Yesterday, the Supreme Court issued a denial of the Romeike family’s petition for certiorari, sparking an immediate and unprecedented reaction. Fox News told HSLDA that they recorded 1 million page views of the Romeikes’ story in 24 hours—an all-time high. Although many were not surprised by the Supreme Court’s decision, it seemed that this was the last hope for the family to avoid being sent back to Germany where they would undoubtedly be persecuted for homeschooling their children.
Second, it’s likely part of a larger immigration “reform” strategy. How could DHS justify indefinite deferments under Obama’s DREAM programs for people who came here illegally and faced no persecution at home, while sending the Romeikes back to Germany.
The Romeikes will be used as an example of compassionate immigration enforcement, which means non-enforcement.
So this result certainly is a victory for the Romeikes, and I’m happy for them.
But no principle of asylum was established that will help other suffering religious persecution. There was no legal victory, instead, DHS picking and choosing winners.
When it comes to immigration enforcement, however, it ultimately may be a loss as it furthers the unilateral discretionary non-enforcement of immigration laws.
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Comments
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They get to pick winners and losers.
Somebody, in some obscure office, gets to decide who stays and who goes. And verbally, they proclaim their magnanimous (or condemning) ruling.
No rule of law.
No standard legal procedure.
No paper trails.
Isn’t THAT what the typical totalitarian dictatorships do?
Political Assylum is distinct from Immigration.
The Magna Carta was signed by King John in 1215.
(This is a test to see if all simple statements of fact receive down votes, or is it unique to banned)
They’re huffed that i predicted the big Fail. it was easy as 123 Abc yeah baby you & meeeee!
and i can’t help but gloat gloat gloat .
Thank God!
I am happy for this particular family, but as I have stated before, compulsory secular education, especially in a western democracy, is a really low bar for persecution. Might as well just grant any and all claims from here on out.
Bang On Mr. Jacobson.
Indefinite deferments by administrative fiat can always be rescinded at a more politically opportune time by administrative fiat.
Somebody in the administration made an executive decision to dunk this PR bomb in a bucket of water before it could be used against the Democrats in November.
Just a thought. Could the Romeikes move to another federal circuit?
One where the Appeals Court is more friendly to the Romeikes?
Then should they come for them they can start the whole process over based on the argument that there is no decision of their status by a relevant court? Then should the Appeals Court in the new circuit side against the government, we could have a circuit split where the Romeikes are both sides of the split.
In such a case we could see the case taken by the SCOTUS because of the circuit split.
For the Romeikes even though such a thing would be a bit nerve wracking, I can’t help but think that it would be a better legal footing than what they are on now.
Maybe they can apply for citizenship and go through the naturalization process before “It takes a village idiot” Hitlery gets elected and boots them out because their steel and independence in avoiding the German public school indoctrination camps violates her social conscience hatred of all things “individual.”
Reason #2 is spot-on. Someone in the administration no doubt realized it was bad optics to be fiercely seeking the deportation of people who came here legally and broke none of our laws and have a well-founded fear of having their children taken away from them — while simultaneously demanding a blanket amnesty for people who came here in willful violation of U.S. laws simply to enhance their material well-being (and start collecting welfare for their children) and most likely committed other crimes, such as forgery and identity theft, and various felonies (as long as they’re not too violent).
The regime decided to toss a bone to advocates of religious and educational freedom in order to advance their narrative in favor of creating millions of new Democrat voters and keeping the floodgates open for millions more.
Is this an election year? Hmm.
Neither husband nor wife wear wedding bands in the picture. Not meaning to imply anything, just noticing. And she must be among the few women who can bear children relatively easily. A blessing.
iIt is worn on the right hand in Germany ( hidden in this pic ) .
BTW this family was recruited by the home schooling organisation who hesrd of their case & set up br them in Tennessee. This organisation is aiming to expend this practice & hence the ruling is a blow . they spent 6 yrars on it & mucho dohlahs.
Huh?
It’s a proper decision. Discretion in deportation is supposed to be exercised on a case by case basis, and here it is. Obama has already exempted broad segments of the illegal population from deportation, it would be just cruel not to do so with this family.
But it was always a failing asylum case. Nothing in German law singles out their faith or family or prohibits them from “home-schooling” their children as they wish – BUT it does require the children, like all others in Germany, to attend regular public schools.
If we consider this a case requiring asylum, open the floodgates because anyone can find some way to interpret their religious beliefs that their home country doesn’t allow.
It seems to me the religious persecution is only secondary to the political persecution when one considers that German law mandates that all kids attend their schools. Governments are political bodies. They pass a law that is visited on all citizens, then the citizens are acting in accordance with that political body, unless they defy it as we see in this case.
Since this is an election year and also the Democrat ‘Christmas season’ of giving PR ‘gift bags’ how about the order of Obamacare not be acted on as well. And, the Keystone pipeline be given a “Reset” button to go ahead.