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Minnesota Legislature Votes to Support Immigrant Survivors of Crime
Posted on Jul 02 2021
June 30, 2021 – This morning, the Minnesota legislature passed the Public Safety Omnibus Bill which, among other provisions, ensures consistency and transparency in the treatment of immigrant survivors of crime by local law enforcement. The bill now goes to the Governor, who is expected to sign it shortly.
Immigrant survivors of crime are often hesitant to seek assistance from law enforcement because of fear of deportation. The federal government therefore created the U visa, which allows immigrant survivors to obtain immigration protection if they are helpful in the investigation and/or prosecution of the crime. To obtain a U visa—which usually takes more than five years—an immigrant survivor must first obtain a certification from law enforcement. Unfortunately, there have been too many instances of law enforcement officials in Minnesota failing to respond to requests for certification, leaving immigrant survivors living in fear.
The U visa certification bill sets deadlines for certification decisions and requires law enforcement agencies to identify a U visa certification point person, implement language access protocols, and refrain from disclosing the immigration status of survivors except where required by law.
“We are thrilled that immigrant survivors in Minnesota will now encounter consistent policies and receive timely decisions on U visa certification requests regardless of where they were victimized,” said ILCM executive director Veena Iyer. “Immigrant survivors of crime need and deserve the protection offered through U visas. We now look to Governor Walz to sign this bill into law and make our criminal justice system more supportive to immigrant survivors.”