Civil Rights Law

Blog Posts - Civil rights law

Do you qualify for refugee status in the United States?

United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) refers to those that have been forced to flee their original country as refugees. Much like any other category of immigrant wishing to settle in the U.S., the federal government limits the number of refugees it allows to enter the country on an…

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Elliott Ozment gives additional testimony to Civil Rights Commission on civil asset forfeiture

Ozment Law, PLC founder and managing attorney Elliott Ozment recently testified in proceedings of the U.S. Civil Rights Commission on the discriminatory enforcement and negative consequences of civil asset forfeiture, a program that allows police to steal a person’s property without charging the person with a crime. Ozment’s comments focused on the…

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Community activists try to head off immigration arrests

In recent years, as long as an undocumented immigrant stayed out of trouble with the law, he or she could generally rest easy without wondering if an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent was behind every knock on the door. That’s all changed — ICE is currently sweeping through immigrant-heavy…

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Entering the U.S. and your civil rights

Law enforcement officers cannot stop, detain, search or remove anyone based solely on your political beliefs, ethnicity, gender, national origin, race or religion. At the border and at all airports, though, law enforcement has the right to search any and all bags, and ask questions about your travel itinerary and…

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Civil rights law covers immigrants along with citizens

Being an immigrant in the United States can be a challenge. Despite their best efforts, even law enforcement officers here in Nashville may make assumptions about an individual because they might not be a citizen of the United States. Officers are cautioned against racial profiling, but that does not always…

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