New Mexico immigrant advocates and law enforcement leaders told state lawmakers on Wednesday that they plan to reintroduce a bill in the upcoming legislative session in January to streamline the process for undocumented crime victims to obtain visas, sourcenm.com reported.
The Mechanics and Hurdles of the U Visa Process
Federal guidelines currently allow undocumented individuals who survive specific violent crimes and assist a district attorney’s prosecution or a police department’s investigation to qualify for a U Visa. This status provides lawful residence for four years. Typically, an official within the police department or prosecutor’s office handling the case must certify the victim’s eligibility. However, during the interim Courts, Corrections and Justice Committee hearing, advocates and law enforcement officials informed state lawmakers that New Mexico currently lacks consistent guidelines regarding how prosecutors and police ought to manage these certifications.
In some cases, a victim’s attorney cannot even identify the certifying official within a specific police department. A local district attorney noted that immigrant crime victims are going silent amid deportation fears, leaving abusers free.
That silence jeopardizes a victim’s ability to stay in the country. It also compromises a police department’s ability to investigate crimes and refer charges, Albuquerque Police Department Commander Paul Haugh said during the hearing.
Victims need to know that they can come forward, Department Commander Paul Haugh
Haugh said, adding that their cooperation is fundamental for the agency to prosecute crimes. Accompanying Haugh during his remarks were Deshawnda Chaparro, the legal director for the Santa Fe Dreamers Project, and Valeria Garcia Tavarez, associate managing attorney at the New Mexico Immigrant Law Center.
Leaders Plan Bill to Expedite Law Enforcement Certifications
The three leaders confirmed they plan to introduce a bill in next year’s legislative session. The proposed legislation would require law enforcement agencies to make certification decisions within a specific timeframe. That timeline would be expedited if the victim faced active deportation proceedings. Advocates are also weighing potential penalties for agencies that fail to comply.
Rarely are we having to argue with law enforcement agencies on the actual merits.
Garcia Tavarez said.
Most of the time we simply receive no reply at all, which serves as the primary motivation behind our push to pass this legislation.
This proposal marks the fourth time a similar measure has come before the Legislature. Sen. Antoinette Sedillo Lopez (D-Albuquerque), who sponsored previous iterations of the proposal, said she will support it in the 2027 legislative session. She cited reports of undocumented victims receiving uneven treatment across different jurisdictions.
Senate Majority Whip Cindy Nava (D-Bernalillo) backed the bill as well. Nava shared that her family underwent the burdensome process of obtaining a U Visa when her sister, a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals recipient, sought certification after being attacked outside a Santa Fe Target store. Enshrining stronger guidelines and timeline requirements in state law would help streamline the process, she said.
This is something nobody actually wants to do.
Nava said.
It is not an easy process in any way, shape or form.
Garcia Tavarez told sourcenm.com after the hearing that advocates are still examining whether an undocumented victim could expose themselves to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents by cooperating with a local police department. Recent immigration arrests in New Mexico partly drive the push to include expedited timelines for victims facing deportation.
“If one victim doesn’t feel safe, none of us do,” she said.
