The Christian Science Monitor has quoted Kutak Rock attorney Clete Samson in the article “Court fight over DACA highlights legal rights of noncitizens.” President Trump set a March 5 deadline to wind down the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) program, but federal courts have blocked him from phasing out the program and Congress has stalled on negotiations. The underlying message from the courts is that legal principles matter for all people.

Samson said, “It’s a myth that noncitizens don’t have constitutional rights because they are non citizens. I hear it a lot now in all these immigration debates, that these individuals don’t even have due-process rights. But their right to have the opportunity to contest the government remains one of democracy’s most fundamental values: No government can deprive a person of liberty without a giving valid reason ruled by law.”

Read "Court fight over DACA highlights legal rights of noncitizens."

Samson's work at Kutak Rock includes immigration law, worksite compliance, employment law, and litigation. He previously served for seven years as a federal trial attorney for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.