Michael Kagan is co-director of the Immigration Clinic at the William S. Boyd School of Law.On June 2, Professor Kagan joined Kevin Johnson, dean at the University of California Davis School of Law, in speaking with June Grasso on Bloomberg Radio’s Bloomberg Law. The segment, titled “Bloomberg Law: Court Rejects Phoenix Immigration Law,” discussed the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to reject a bid to reinstate a law that denied bail to immigrants who are in the country illegally and are charged with certain felonies.
During the interview, Professor Kagan spoke about the variations of the violations and felonies mentioned in the Arizona decision: “One of the things important to keep in mind here is that any person, citizen or immigrant could be denied bail or have a very high bail set if the court finds that they are a risk of flight or a danger to the community. But that’s always based on individual factors and, in this case, what Arizona was doing was saying people accused of even fairly minor felonies … that’s a level of crime that could be inswept in here where people could be denied bail even if they’re not a risk of flight and not a danger to anyone.”
The interview also touched on the ongoing litigation in Texas on President Obama’s executive actions on immigration.
Professor Kagan spent a decade developing legal aid programs for refugees in the Middle East. He co-directs the Immigration Clinic at the Boyd School of Law.
