Nature of the Proceedings

There is no jury in Immigration Court proceedings: the Immigration Judge is empowered to make both findings of fact and conclusions of law. The Strict rules of evidence do not apply, and hearsay is routinely admitted. Further, the Supreme Court has repeatedly held that deportation proceedings are civil in nature, and that the constitutional safeguards available to criminal defendants --such as protection against unlawfully seized evidence and ex post facto application of new legislation­ do not apply