Immigration Law
Concerns Rise as U.S. Citizenship Lawyers in Massachusetts Receive Deportation Notices
April 15, 2025, 10:32 am CDT
Lawyers reported receiving alarming Deportation notices from the Department of Homeland Security. (Photo from Shutterstock)
In a surprising turn of events, two immigration attorneys in Massachusetts, both U.S. citizens, have come forward to share that they received formal notices from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), instructing them to leave the country.
Nicole Micheroni, a Boston-based immigration lawyer who has spent her entire life in Massachusetts, reported receiving such a notice last Friday. The letter indicated that she was previously paroled into the U.S. for a limited time, and it was now being revoked by the government.
“Do not attempt to remain in the United States. The federal government will find you,” the letter stated. “Please depart the United States immediately,” Micheroni recounted.
Feeling fortunate, Micheroni emphasized her U.S. citizenship status, backed up by her passport and birth certificate. “I’m not someone who is supposed to leave,” she said, expressing her concern over the situation. “I think it’s really scary this is going on,” she added in an interview with NBC Boston. “I think it says they’re not being careful.”
Jessie Bello, another immigration lawyer based in Boston, experienced a similar situation. Originally from the Dominican Republic, Bello has been a U.S. citizen since 2007. She reported that not only did she receive a similar notice, but many of her clients had also been affected.
The DHS is currently revoking paroles issued to over 900,000 individuals who entered the U.S. using an online appointment application, a policy enacted under presidential authority which typically allowed these individuals to stay for two years. As part of this new directive, the DHS has mandated immediate departures for those whose paroles are being canceled, as reported by the Associated Press. However, the DHS has not disclosed the exact number of these notices sent out.
The notification process utilized email addresses provided by immigrants, which, in some instances, incorporated contacts listed by the individuals, including U.S. citizens.
As this situation evolves, legal experts and affected individuals warn about the implications and potential errors in the administration of such notices, raising alarms within immigration advocacy circles.
