Before the Trump administration, it was common for immigration attorneys to negotiate with ICE for "prosecutorial discretion," through which removal proceedings would be indefinitely suspended and foreign nationals would be allowed to stay and work in the United States (without a path to a green card).

Unfortunately, the practice of prosecutorial discretion has all but ended, according to a recent article by the American Immigration Council. This means longer backlogs in Immigration Court, as well as restricting the power of ICE prosecutors to use their discretion to determine which foreign nationals are priorities for removal (e.g. those with criminal records).

The take-away from this: if you take an action that might result in Immigration Court proceedings -- for example, filing a challenging asylum claim -- you can be guaranteed that the ICE attorney will be trying to remove you, no matter how sympathetic your case is and how good a member of the community you have been. These are dark days.