Kate Morrissey

Kate Morrissey covered immigration for The San Diego Union-Tribune.

Tijuana, MX - October 19: Alexandro Villadiego, left, Enyenbeth Sumoza, Michael Estrada, Abraham Suarez and Rafael Estrada wait in a courtyard of a shelter on Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2022 in Tijuana, MX. The Biden istration announced in October that 24,000 Venezuelans will be allowed to enter into the United States if they have a U.S. sponsor and their application is approved. However, Venezuelans who cross without permission will be expelled to Mexico. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Los venezolanos luchan con la nueva realidad en Tijuana tras las expulsiones de Estados Unidos

October 28, 2022 at 11:00 p.m.

Cuando un avión lleno de migrantes venezolanos aterrizó en San Diego procedente de Texas en una tarde reciente, Luis González y muchos de los que le rodeaban empezaron a aplaudir,...

Venezuelans struggle with new reality in Tijuana after expulsions from United States

October 29, 2022 at 11:25 p.m.

When a plane full of Venezuelan migrants landed in San Diego from Texas on a recent afternoon, Luis Gonzalez and many of those around him began to applaud, rattling the...

Oceanside building saved from fire by sprinkler system

October 23, 2022 at 10:35 p.m.

OCEANSIDE — An Oceanside building that caught on fire Saturday night was spared thanks to its fire sprinkler system, an Oceanside fire official said. "This goes to show the importance a working...

Sheriff’s bomb/arson unit investigating after fire damages home near Flinn Springs

October 23, 2022 at 7:47 p.m.

EAST COUNTY — The San Diego County sheriff's bomb/arson team is investigating the cause of a Saturday night fire that damaged a house in an unincorporated area east of El Cajon, a...

August 23, 2013_Enrique Morones arrives at city hall Friday afternoon to attend the council meeting. Nelvin Cepeda / U-T San Diego/Copyright 2013 San Diego Union-Tribune, LLC

Dos mujeres denunciaron acoso sexual contra el fundador de Border Angels; el, se retiro

October 26, 2022 at 11:07 p.m.

En 2019, Enrique Morones, conocido activista de los derechos de los inmigrantes a nivel nacional, se dio de baja repentinamente de Border Angels, la organización que fundó. Meses después, se...

Before Border Angels founder retired, two women alleged sexual harassment

February 6, 2023 at 8:58 p.m.

In 2019, Enrique Morones, a nationally known immigration rights activist, went on sudden leave from Border Angels, the organization he founded. Months later, he retired, with little explanation. Two women...

Fire burns outside of bank in City Heights area

October 17, 2022 at 1:41 a.m.

SAN DIEGO — A fire that started around a dumpster outside a bank in the City Heights area reached the eaves of the building before it was extinguished on Sunday morning, according...

A water main break in the Morena neighborhood early Sunday created a large sinkhole in the street. Crews are making repairs.

Water main break closes block of Morena Boulevard

October 17, 2022 at 1:59 a.m.

SAN DIEGO — One side of a street in the Morena neighborhood was shut down early Sunday after a water main burst and was expected to be closed most of the...

Man found with gunshot wound dies in Del Cerro

October 16, 2022 at 10:43 p.m.

SAN DIEGO — A man found with a gunshot wound on a Del Cerro street early Sunday died later, and homicide detectives are investigating the incident, police said.Officers responding to a...

San Diego, CA - October 10: San Diego County Supervisor Nora Vargas takes a tour of the new Welcome Center in National City that will provide services to immigrants and refugees on Monday, Oct. 10, 2022 in San Diego, CA. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

San Diego County unveils ‘welcome center’ for immigrants and refugees in National City

October 12, 2022 at 6:16 p.m.

San Diego County officials unveiled a welcome center for immigrants and refugees on Monday in National City.The welcome center, located on the second floor of the County of San Diego...

Washington (United States), 06/10/2022.- US President Joe Biden waves to the of the media on the South Lawn of the White House before his departure to Poughkeepsie, New York, in Washington, DC, USA, 06 October 2022. (Estados Unidos, Nueva York) EFE/EPA/Yuri Gripas/ABACA / POOL

El indulto a la marihuana de Biden no ayudara a muchos inmigrantes con casos de deportacion

October 8, 2022 at 1:28 a.m.

Aunque una condena federal por simple posesión de marihuana es un delito susceptible de deportación, es poco probable que el indulto concedido esta semana por el presidente Joe Biden ayude...

Biden’s marijuana pardon not likely to help many immigrants with deportation cases

October 10, 2022 at 12:36 a.m.

Though a federal conviction for simple marijuana possession is a deportable offense, the pardon this week from President Joe Biden is not likely to help many immigrants with their court...

San Ysidro, CA - September 20: San Ysidro new port director Mariza Marin speaks during an interview with The San Diego Union-Tribune at the San Ysidro Port of Entry on Tuesday, Sept. 20, 2022 in San Ysidro, CA. (Meg McLaughlin / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

La nueva directora del puerto de San Ysidro promete reabrir PedWest en algun momento

September 26, 2022 at 4:46 p.m.

El puerto de entrada de San Ysidro, uno de los cruces fronterizos terrestres más transitados del mundo, está dirigido por primera vez en su historia por una mujer.La directora del...

San Ysidro’s new port director promises to reopen PedWest eventually

September 26, 2022 at 4:34 p.m.

The San Ysidro Port of Entry, one the busiest land border crossings in the world, is for the first time in its history run by a woman.Port Director Mariza Marin...

CALEXICO, CA.-Jan. 12, 2017,- The exterior of the ICE Imperial Regional Detention Facility in Calexico, California on January 12, 2017. PHOTO/JOHN GIBBINS, Staff photographer, San Diego Union-Tribune) copyright 2017 Credit John Gibbins / San Diego Union-Tribune

Complaint alleges Calexico immigration detention officials use solitary confinement as retaliation

September 14, 2022 at 11:23 p.m.

Immigration detainees at Imperial Regional Detention Facility say they have been placed in solitary confinement after speaking out about conditions there.The allegation is among several in a complaint filed Tuesday...

San Diego launches ‘Welcoming Week’ at public libraries and rec centers to embrace immigrants

September 8, 2022 at 10:30 p.m.

San Diegans can stop by public libraries or recreation centers to write welcoming notes for newly arrived immigrants as part of the city's "Welcoming Week" initiative.The week, organized from Sept....

A couple of dogs were "ruff" housing in Ocean Beach on Monday.

Ocean Beach’s Dog Beach reopens to water after closing due to sewage spill

September 4, 2022 at 10:09 p.m.

SAN DIEGO — The water at Ocean Beach's Dog Beach reopened to the public after being closed since Thursday due to a sewage spill, according to the San Diego County Department...

Separate fights in Vista lead to gunshot wound, injured hand

September 5, 2022 at 12:15 a.m.

VISTA — County sheriff's deputies responded to two fights in Vista Saturday night — one resulted in part of a man's finger being amputated and another left a teen with a gunshot...

Teen arrested in fatal stabbing of 19-year-old man in Imperial Beach

September 5, 2022 at 12:16 a.m.

IMPERIAL BEACH — A 17-year-old boy was taken into custody Saturday in the fatal stabbing of a National City man Thursday night near the Imperial Beach Pier, authorities said.Sheriff’s homicide Lt. Chris...

Roque Caza is the new director for the Calexico and Andrade Ports of Entry for Customs and Border Protection

Calexico Port of Entry has new officer in charge

September 2, 2022 at 9:36 p.m.

The port of entry that connects Calexico with Mexicali has a new director.U.S. Customs and Border Protection announced in August that Roque Caza would be taking over as port director...

FILE - Afghan women wait to receive cash at a money distribution point organized by the World Food Program, in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Nov. 20, 2021. The lives of Afghan women and girls are being destroyed by the Taliban’s crackdown on their human rights, said Amnesty International in a new report Wednesday, July 27, 2022. The London-based watchdog criticized Taliban authorities saying that since Taliban took control of the country in August 2021, they have violated women’s and girls’ rights to education, work and free movement. (AP Photo/Petros Giannakouris, File)

Reporter notebook: A conversation with an Afghan woman on choosing to stay

August 29, 2022 at 1:10 p.m.

Muska Gailani, a 28-year-old women’s rights activist who is still living in Kabul, has no plans to leave Afghanistan.Her sister has lived in San Diego for decades, and with the...

La Mesa, CA - August 24:

Wearing her grandmother’s earrings, Masooma Said, 24 from Kunar Province was among the Afghan evacuee who fled Afghanistan when the Taliban took control of Kabul. On Wednesday, Aug. 24, 2022 in La Mesa, CA., Said shared the chaotic and frightening experiences as she tried to get he family on a flight out of Afghanistan. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Afghan evacuees in San Diego live in limbo, look to Congress for a path to permanence

August 29, 2022 at 1:10 p.m.

SAN DIEGO — One year ago, Masooma Said waded through chest-high water in a stream next to the Kabul airport to beg a soldier to save her, her mother and her sister.She...

LOS ANGELES-CA-AUGUST 15, 2022: Lucy, center, is photographed with her son Anner, 18, left, and daughter Mariela, 10, at their home in Los Angeles on Monday, August 15, 2022. The family was separated near the Calexico border by border patrol agents. (Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

Family separations at the border continue under Biden

August 21, 2022 at 3:18 a.m.

A Salvadoran mother was separated from her children at the border earlier this year in a case that legal advocates say illustrates the way border policies continue to cause trauma...

FILE - Children play a game on a cell phone in a shelter for migrants, May 23, 2022, in Tijuana, Mexico. The Supreme Court has ruled that the Biden istration properly ended a Trump-era policy forcing some U.S. asylum-seekers to wait in Mexico. The justices’ 5-4 decision for the istration came in a case about the “Remain in Mexico” policy under President Donald Trump. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)

Primero confusion, y finalmente alivio, a medida que “Permanecer en Mexico” inicia su fin en San Diego

August 15, 2022 at 5:20 p.m.

Momentos después de que su caso de inmigración fuera escuchado el miércoles, un solicitante de asilo cubano de 51 años se sentó en un banco en la parte trasera de...

First confusion, and finally some relief, as ‘Remain in Mexico’ begins to wind down in San Diego

August 19, 2022 at 9:29 p.m.

Moments after his immigration case was heard Wednesday, a 51-year-old Cuban asylum seeker sat on a bench in the back of the courtroom and wept openly. He had just learned...

of the Mexican Army, firefighters and forensic experts work at the site where unknown persons burnt down shops in Ciudad Juarez, state of Chihuahua, Mexico, on August 11, 2022. (Photo by HERIKA MARTINEZ / AFP) (Photo by HERIKA MARTINEZ/AFP via Getty Images)

Tijuana goes into lockdown after cars burned across city

August 19, 2022 at 9:30 p.m.

Many Tijuana residents took shelter Friday evening after burning vehicles appeared throughout the city in what is suspected to be a coordinated act of organized crime.At least 19 vehicles, including...

Tijuana, Mexico - July 20: Adan, 30, waits in a shelter where he stays before heading to San Diego's immigration court on Wednesday, July 20, 2022 in Tijuana, Mexico. Adan left Nicaragua to seek asylum in the United States because he was being persecuted for political opinions by the government and has been living in Tijuana, Mexico for about seven months as he waits for his case to go through the U.S. immigration courts. He hopes to his family in Miami.(Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Permanecer en Mexico se prolonga a pesar de la decision del Tribunal Supremo

August 9, 2022 at 1:30 a.m.

Más de un mes después de que el Tribunal Supremo dictaminara, en una decisión sorprendente, que el gobierno de Biden podía poner fin al programa Permanecer en México, no han...

‘Remain in Mexico’ drags on despite Supreme Court decision

August 8, 2022 at 3:30 a.m.

More than a month after the Supreme Court ruled, in a surprise decision, that the Biden istration could end the "Remain in Mexico" program, not much has changed for the...

Chula Vista, CA - July 26:

John Fanestil was among the more than 50 demonstrators who heard from speakers, listened to poems and marched in front of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection - San Diego Border Patrol Sector Headquarters on Tuesday, July 26, 2022 in Chula Vista, CA. (Nelvin C. Cepeda / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

La construccion del nuevo muro fronterizo en el Parque de la Amistad seguira adelante a pesar de reclamos

July 29, 2022 at 12:27 a.m.

Los planes para construir dos barreras fronterizas de 30 pies a través del histórico Parque de la Amistad seguirán adelante, a pesar de las objeciones de grupos comunitarios locales y...

Peggy Peattie??U-T Vista de las afueras del cruce peatonal PedWest en San Ysidro.

Lawsuit alleging border officials falsely imprisoned 9-year-old U.S. citizen girl es legal hurdle

July 29, 2022 at 2:29 a.m.

A federal judge is allowing a lawsuit to move forward that was brought by the family of a 9-year-old girl, a U.S. citizen, who was held in custody at the...

New border wall going up in Friendship Park

July 28, 2022 at 3:21 p.m.

Plans to construct two 30-foot border barriers through the historic Friendship Park will continue, despite objections of local community groups and 15 of Congress.The groups and congressional leaders are...

Tijuana, Baja California - July 14: Eduardo Sanchez, 39, talks about how he was recently deported to Tijuana after a routine visit U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Thursday, July 14, 2022 in Tijuana, Baja California. Sanchez had been living in the United States since 2000 with his wife and two sons. He is now living with a friend's spare room where he sleeps on an air mattress. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

El ICE ha reanudado la deportacion de inmigrantes desprevenidos en los controles rutinarios

July 23, 2022 at 11:53 p.m.

Cuando Eduardo Sánchez se presentó una mañana reciente para un control con los funcionarios de inmigración en el centro de San Diego, supuso que sería como todos los que ha...

ICE has resumed deporting unsuspecting immigrants at routine check-ins

July 25, 2022 at 8:57 p.m.

When Eduardo Sanchez showed up on a recent morning for a check-in with immigration officials in downtown San Diego, he assumed it would be like every other one he has...

SAN DIEGO, CA - AUGUST 22: A celebration was held for the 50th Anniversary of Friendship Park at Border Field State Park on Sunday, August 22, 2021 in San Diego, CA. The park is currently closed. (K.C. Alfred / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Vargas y Hueso se oponen a los planes de construccion del muro fronterizo del Parque de la Amistad

July 15, 2022 at 11:11 p.m.

El gobierno de Biden se enfrenta a la presión de los demócratas de California en los distritos fronterizos por los planes de reanudar la construcción del muro en Friendship Park,...

Vargas, Hueso push back on Friendship Park border wall construction plans

July 13, 2022 at 12:42 a.m.

The Biden istration is facing pushback from California Democrats in border districts over plans to resume wall construction at Friendship Park, a binational park that s Imperial Beach and Tijuana.The...

Sailor found dead on USS Carl Vinson

July 11, 2022 at 3:10 p.m.

A sailor was found dead aboard the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson at North Island on Sunday, according to a statement issued by the U.S. Navy.After the sailor was found...

Driver who fled CHP traffic stop near Rincon is sought

July 11, 2022 at 12:28 a.m.

NORTH COUNTY — California Highway Patrol officers and sheriff's deputies were on the lookout Sunday for a silver Audi near Rincon after the driver refused to pull over for a CHP...

Firefighters rescued a person from the cliffs above Black's Beach early Sunday.

Person is rescued from cliffs above Black’s Beach

July 12, 2022 at 3:15 a.m.

San Diego firefighters and lifeguards rescued a person from the cliffs above Black's Beach early July 10.A person walking along the shore the night before heard someone calling for help...

San Diego firefighters rescue person from cliffs near Black’s Beach

July 10, 2022 at 8:03 p.m.

San Diego firefighters and lifeguards rescued a person from the cliffs above Black's Beach early Sunday.A person walking along the shore heard someone calling out for help in the cliffs...

San Diego, California - July 06: Carlos Quinto, 46, of San Bernardino, waves to his 20-year-old son that he sees in the distance through the US-Mexico border wall on Wednesday, July 6, 2022 in San Diego, California. Quinto hasn't seen his son in about seven years. Plans for two 30-foot walls have been approved at the western end of the US-Mexico border where Friendship Park is located. The park is where families and friends often meet and talk through the fence. Current plans for the new walls do not include a pedestrian gate. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Once a symbol of binational unity, Friendship Park could close to cross-border reunions forever

July 20, 2022 at 10:29 p.m.

Isabel Aguilar hasn't hugged her grandmother in well over a decade.On Wednesday, she and her mother stood on a hill looking over the beach that is the southwesternmost corner of...

Rita Fernandez, the City of San Diego's first Immigrant Affairs Manager. Photographed at City Hall, November 5, 2019.

San Diego amplia el apoyo a los inmigrantes con una nueva oficina municipal

July 7, 2022 at 1:09 p.m.

La ciudad de San Diego cuenta ahora con una Oficina de Asuntos de los Inmigrantes.El alcalde Todd Gloria anunció la nueva incorporación el martes, cuando la ciudad se adentra en...

San Diego expands of immigrants with new city office

July 7, 2022 at 12:00 a.m.

The city of San Diego now has an Office of Immigrant Affairs.Mayor Todd Gloria announced the new addition on Tuesday as the city moves into its new fiscal year. The...

Tijuana, Baja California - April 08: Asylum seekers arriving at the shelter come with out shoe laces. While in detention their laces are removed by United States Customs and Border Protection at Templo Embajadores De Jes?s on Thursday, April 8, 2021 in Tijuana, Baja California (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Who’s getting caught by Border Patrol? Increasingly, the answer is children

July 5, 2022 at 12:48 a.m.

Migrants apprehended by Border Patrol are much more likely to be children than they were roughly a decade ago. The share of apprehensions that are of minors grew fivefold in...

Tijuana, Baja California - June 30: Adan, 30, left Nicaragua to seek asylum in the United States because he was being persecuted for his political opinions by the government. He has been living in Tijuana, Mexico for about six-months as he waits for his case to go through the U.S. immigration courts. Thursday the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the Biden istration could end the Migrant Protection Protocols, also known as MPP. He hopes to reunite with his mother, sister and nephew in Miami. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Supreme Court rules ‘Remain in Mexico’ can end. Now asylum seekers wait in Tijuana to see if it really will

August 8, 2022 at 11:07 p.m.

The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the Biden istration can end the "Remain in Mexico" program, but life does not appear likely to change much for asylum seekers waiting in...

El Cajon, California - June 22: Merfat Salas sits next to her son, Ahmad Alsidnawi, 28, as he FaceTimes from Turkey on Wednesday, June 22, 2022 in El Cajon, California. The Alsidnawi returned home after their family member, Ahmad Alsidnawi, was stopped by the Mexican immigration agency after landing in Mexico City and sent back to Turkey. The family hasn't seen Ahmad in nearly a decade and had planned a month-long reunion in Tijuana, Mexico. The Syrian family left their home in 2012 after a bomb destroyed the father's shop and all moved to Egypt, other than Ahmad who went to Turkey to pursue his education. The family came to El Cajon in 2016. He has been unable to reunite with his family because of the Trump istration's travel ban. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

He tried to reunite with his Syrian refugee family in Tijuana, just briefly. Mexico said no

June 26, 2022 at 12:01 p.m.

Clusters of balloons draped along the wall in the dining area of the vacation rental in Tijuana, framing a sailboat that the owners had hung to emphasize the space's ocean...

A military transport plane departs overhead as Afghans hoping to leave the country wait outside the Kabul airport on Aug. 23, 2021. Since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan earlier in August, more than 120,000 people were airlifted out of Afghanistan in one of the largest mass evacuations in U.S. history.

Afghans face insurmountable challenges in fleeing to U.S., a stark contrast to arriving Ukrainians

June 19, 2022 at 1:01 p.m.

After the last evacuation flights left Afghanistan, Homayra Yusufi's family was one of many that scrambled to file applications to help their loved ones reach safety in the United States.Well...

Tijuana, Mexico - June 02: Eldyne Archange, center, mourns the loss of her brother as her cousin, Guinot Valdez, right, and another man hold her as friends, families and ers gather in a small funeral home to the lives of Jocelyn Anselme, 34, and Calory Archange, 30, two Haitians who died living in Mexico on Thursday, June 2, 2022 in Tijuana, Mexico. Anselme was killed and Archange died of a heart attack. Anselme and Archange have been stuck in Tijuana because of Title 42, a program that prevents asylum seekers and other undocumented immigrants from crossing in to the United States. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Para los migrantes haitianos, la espera en Tijuana conlleva miedo, discriminacion e incluso muerte

June 15, 2022 at 11:37 p.m.

En la última conversación telefónica que Pethou Archange mantuvo con su hermano menor, éste le dijo que le tenía una sorpresa para su cumpleaños.Al día siguiente, Archange, de 41 años,...

For Haitian migrants, waiting in Tijuana brings fear, discrimination, even death

June 15, 2022 at 11:30 p.m.

In the last phone conversation that Pethou Archange had with her younger brother, he told her that he had a surprise for her birthday. The next day, Archange, 41, received...

Vista, California - May 26: Maria Perez becomes emotional after recounting a story on Thursday, May 26, 2022 in Vista, California. Perez and her four children are facing eviction after being behind on rent because her husband, who is the sole provider, is in the Otay Mesa Detention Center. Ancelmo Carrillo-Carillo has been in the immigration detention center since December. The family is currently packing and will place their belongings in storage until they find a place to stay. Perez said she is returning her keys to the landlord on May 31. Perez is recovering from a caesarean section and is unable to work full-time but tries to pick up side jobs such as cleaning homes when possible. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Con el padre detenido por inmigracion, la familia de Vista se enfrenta al desalojo

June 7, 2022 at 9:15 p.m.

En cuestión de días, María Pérez y sus cuatro hijos podrían quedarse sin hogar.El martes debe entregar la llave de la casa de Vista que su familia ha alquilado durante...

On Tuesday the Catholic Diocese of San Diego held a meeting for all priest, teachers and istrative personnel at the USD campus. Bishop Robert W. McElroy of the San Diego Diocese greeted people as they arrived before the meeting.

San Diego’s Catholic bishop to become cardinal, a first for the diocese

May 30, 2022 at 6:00 p.m.

San Diego Catholic Bishop Robert McElroy was named by Pope Francis on Sunday as one of 21 new cardinals, which will be first time that the local diocese will be...

With father in immigration detention, Vista family faces eviction

May 30, 2022 at 6:21 p.m.

In a matter of days, María Pérez and her four children could become homeless. On Tuesday, she is supposed to turn in the key to the house in Vista her...

Tijuana, Baja California - May 25: Migrants at a practice dance rehearsal for the "Stay in Mexico" Opera 360 that will happen this Saturday at the CEART Tijuana theatre on Wednesday, May 25, 2022. Many of the migrants are from different parts of Latin America and the Caribbean and have been paid to dance in this dynamic performance that encom the migrant experience in relation to the immigration policy of the Migrant Protection Protocols (MPP) which initiated back in January 2019. (Carlos Moreno / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Migrant opera showcases experiences of those stuck in Tijuana

May 28, 2022 at 5:06 a.m.

Patricia Bonito never thought of herself as a dancer.But when a group planning to stage a contemporary opera in Tijuana showed up at the migrant shelter where she lived to...

Tijuana, Baja California - May 22: Migrants gathered near the San Ysidro Port of Entry to hold a candlelight vigil and protesting the end of Title 42 in honoring those affected by the CDC health policy that advocates say keeps people in precarious and dangerous situations while seeking asylum to the U.S. on Sunday, May 22, 2022 in Tijuana, Baja California. (Carlos Moreno / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Agentes fronterizos ya examinan a familias solicitantes de asilo que temen persecucion antes de expulsarlos

May 26, 2022 at 4:49 p.m.

Esta semana, los agentes fronterizos han empezado a remitir a algunas familias solicitantes de asilo sorprendidas al cruzar la frontera para que sean sometidas a un examen especial, a fin...

Border officials begin screening asylum-seeking families for fear of persecution prior to expulsion

May 26, 2022 at 1:21 a.m.

Border officials this week began referring some asylum-seeking families caught crossing the border for special screenings to see if they are likely to be harmed in the countries where they...

Tom K. Wong grew up working with parents at the local swap meet selling toys that his parents couldnâ€™t afford for him. He arrived in the U.S. with parents in 1984 when he was 2-years old. It wasnâ€™t until he was 16-years old when he wanted to apply for work did he learn from his parents that he was undocumented. After high school with no college future and no job, he considered moving back to Hong Kong. His girlfriend then asked him to marry her and since then they have been married and have triplet 7-year old boys. In 2016 Wong served as an advisor to the White House on the initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders on the immigration portfolio. He currently lives in North Park and is a Associate Professor of Political Science at UC San Diego.

UCSD professor Tom Wong wins national civil rights award

May 25, 2022 at 12:53 p.m.

UC San Diego professor Tom Wong has received a national award recognizing his work on immigrant rights. The American Civil Liberties Union honored Wong earlier this month with its Presidential...

Tijuana, Baja California - May 17: Ceidy Zethare, 22, left, and Emy Abrego, 34, walk back to Jardín de las Mariposas, a shelter for LGBTQ migrants and asylum seekers on Tuesday, May 17, 2022 in Tijuana, Baja California. Zethare had learned through a phone call that she will be allowed to enter the United States through a special program for particularly vulnerable migrants. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Un mensaje de voz en una lavanderia, un renacimiento al otro lado de la frontera. El viaje de una mujer trans a EUA

May 25, 2022 at 5:23 p.m.

Por meses, la vida de Ceidy Zethare se centró en una pregunta: cuándo podría entrar en lo que ella llama "la puerta grande" de los Estados Unidos.La joven de 22...

A voice message in a laundromat, and a rebirth across the border. One trans woman’s journey to U.S. soil

May 23, 2022 at 11:52 p.m.

For months, Ceidy Zethare's life centered on one question — when would she be able to enter what she calls "the big front door" to the United States.The 22-year-old oscillated...

Tijuana, Baja California - May 06: Jose Geovanny Torres Morataya, 22, is from Guatemala but has been living at Jardin de las Mariposas, a shelter for LGBTQ migrants and asylum seekers, on Friday, May 6, 2022 in Tijuana, Baja California.Torres came to the shelter several months ago. She was raped and contracted HIV, a reason why she fled her home country. She is currently transitioning and hopes to seek asylum in the United States. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Congresistas destacan la lucha de los solicitantes de asilo LGBTQ en su visita a la frontera

May 16, 2022 at 9:32 p.m.

José Geovanny Torres Morataya no puede volver a su país porque, como mujer trans en transición, está segura de que la matarán."Guatemala es una sociedad muy cerrada mentalmente para las...

Congress highlight LGBTQ asylum seekers’ struggles in visit to border

May 10, 2022 at 5:52 a.m.

José Geovanny Torres Morataya cannot go back to her country because, as a trans woman in transition, she is sure that she will be killed."Guatemala is a very mentally closed...

San Diego, California - June 08: United States Border Patrol tours an area where larger number of noncitizens are making multiple border crossing attempts. Border Patrol agent Jeff Stephenson calls on the radio for agents in the area at Otay Mountain on Tuesday, June 8, 2021 in San Diego, California (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

CBP moves to phase out Border Patrol units accused of cover-ups

May 7, 2022 at 3:01 a.m.

Customs and Border Protection is planning to get rid of special Border Patrol units that have been accused of covering up official wrongdoing.The agency announced Friday in a memo that...

More families call for investigations into special Border Patrol units accused of coverups

May 7, 2022 at 1:23 a.m.

More families whose loved ones were killed by border officials are calling for investigations into secretive Border Patrol units that have been accused of covering up what really happened in...

FILE - A Cuban woman and her daughter wait in line to be escorted to a Border Patrol van for processing in Yuma, Ariz., Sunday, Feb. 6, 2022, hoping to remain in the United States to seek asylum. U.S. authorities have lifted a public health order to expel unaccompanied children at borders without a chance at asylum, while leaving it in place for adults and people traveling in families. (AP Photo/Elliot Spagat, File)

Biden istration expands use of Title 42 expulsions after moving to end them

May 6, 2022 at 12:34 a.m.

The Biden istration has expanded expulsions of Cubans and Nicaraguans under a controversial Trump-era pandemic policy, even as it argues publicly that it is time to end the practice.That will...

Tijuana, Baja California - May 02: Twenty-nine asylum seekers are escorted by Group BETA to be processed into the United States. In the middle Pastor Gustavo Banda says goodbye at El Chaparral Port of Entry on Monday, May 2, 2022 in Tijuana, Baja California. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Aduanas y Proteccion Fronteriza se organiza para procesar un numero limitado de solicitantes de asilo

May 4, 2022 at 10:19 p.m.

Dos furgonetas y un auto entraron en el estacionamiento de restringido junto a la plaza El Chaparral, en el lado de Tijuana del puerto de entrada de San Ysidro,...

Customs and Border Protection organizes to process a limited number of particularly vulnerable asylum seekers

May 6, 2022 at 9:26 p.m.

Two vans and a car pulled into the restricted access parking lot by El Chaparral Plaza on the Tijuana side of the San Ysidro Port of Entry a little before...

People use a ladder to scale the border fence at the US/Mexico border in Tecate, Mexico, Thursday, April 21, 2022. The men used the ropes to lower themselves down on the United States side. (AP Photo/Denis Poroy)

UCSD trauma doctors say migrant injuries and deaths rose sharply as the border wall grew taller

May 2, 2022 at 9:42 p.m.

On a foggy night in mid-March, several family from the Mexican state of Michoacán followed smugglers' instructions to climb the first of two border barriers to reach U.S. soil...

County Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer speaks at a press conference celebrating the launch of the Immigrant Rights Legal Defense Program, which she asked the Board of Supervisors to fund last year.

San Diego County launches immigrant legal defense program

April 28, 2022 at 11:50 p.m.

San Diego County began providing free attorneys for immigration cases earlier this month after the Board of Supervisors voted last year to fund such a program.That makes San Diego the...

People arrange their bedding and belongings in a dormitory at the San Diego Rapid Response Network shelter for asylum seeking families. San Diego County offered one of its buildings to house the shelter, which moved in at the beginning of March.

Los supervisores del condado de San Diego votan para designar un nuevo refugio para inmigrantes

April 27, 2022 at 3:23 a.m.

La Junta de Supervisores del Condado de San Diego votó por unanimidad el martes para identificar la propiedad del condado que se utilizará para un refugio de inmigrantes.La medida forma...

San Diego County supervisors vote to designate new migrant shelter

April 27, 2022 at 12:45 a.m.

The San Diego County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously Tuesday to identify county property to use for a migrant shelter.The move comes as part of preparations for asylum processing to...

Tijuana, Baja California - April 25: As the Benito Juarez Sports Complex dwindled down to a few people left after the mass exodus of Ukrainian refugees last night were bused to be quickly processed at the PedWest border crossing to meet the Biden istration's midnight deadline, an additional twenty five people arrived to the shelter after taking taxis and shuttles from the airport on Monday, April 25, 2022 in Tijuana, Baja California. (Carlos Moreno / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Dozens of Ukrainians stuck in Tijuana after U.S. policy change

April 27, 2022 at 2:54 a.m.

Dozens of Ukrainians are stranded in Tijuana after the United States halted land border processing of those fleeing Russia's invasion of their country.The United States launched a program called Uniting...

Semen Brobovskii, 29, and wife Daria Sakhniuk, 27, talk with relatives through video call on their wedding day

Ruso y ucraniana se dan el si en Tijuana; encuentran refugio en Estados Unidos

April 16, 2022 at 2:27 a.m.

La pareja conformada por Semen Bobrovskii, originario de Rusia, y Daria Sakhniuk de Ucrania, planeaba casarse este mes en Kiev, Ucrania, pero el conflicto bélico entre sus países cambió los...

War disrupted their wedding plans, so a Ukrainian and Russian got married in Tijuana

April 16, 2022 at 2:10 a.m.

Semen Brobovskii, who is Russian, and Daria Sakhniuk, who is Ukrainian, planned to get married this month in Kyiv. But the war between their two countries changed those plans.On Wednesday,...

Los Angeles, California April 10 2022- Ukrainain refugee and ballroom dancer Kateryna stands with her boyfriend Nikolas Constantine (double check spelling) at Aesthetic Studios in Los Angeles. Kateryna was recently released from a Louisiana immigration detention center after she tried to come into the U.S. with her U.S. citizen boyfriend to request protection from the war in her country. (Wally Skalij/Los Angeles Times)

A Ukrainian woman was sent to a Louisiana detention center. Then everything changed at the border.

April 16, 2022 at 10:38 p.m.

Kateryna, a 22-year-old Ukrainian woman, experienced first-hand how quickly the U.S. government can change the way it processes people who are fleeing for their lives when there is the political...

This screenshot from OnScene TV shows the panga boat that capsized and washed up near Ocean Beach Pier early Sunday morning

One man dead, three rescued from capsized panga off Ocean Beach

April 11, 2022 at 4:43 a.m.

Three men were rescued and one was found dead after a possible smuggling boat overturned off Ocean Beach early April 10.First responders were called at around 12:45 a.m. after the...

3 customs warehouses at San Diego border ordered to pay over $1.9 million in back wages and penalties

April 10, 2022 at 11:02 p.m.

Three customs warehouses near the San Diego-Tijuana border were ordered to pay more than $1.9 million in back wages and fines after attorneys with the U.S. Department of Labor investigated...

1 hombre muerto, 3 rescatados de panga volcada encontrada cerca de Ocean Beach

April 10, 2022 at 8:30 p.m.

SAN DIEGO — Tres hombres fueron rescatados y uno fue encontrado muerto después de que una presunta embarcación de contrabando volcara cerca del muelle de Ocean Beach el domingo por la...

1 man dead, 3 rescued from capsized panga found in Ocean Beach

April 11, 2022 at 9:29 p.m.

SAN DIEGO — Three men were rescued and one was found dead after a suspected smuggling boat overturned near the Ocean Beach pier early Sunday morning.First responders were called around 12:45...

Yelyzaveta Krasulia (left) and Molly Surazhsky sit at a table in Mexico City on their way to the San Diego-Tijuana border. Yelyzaveta, a minor, was separated from Surazhsky after they got to the San Ysidro Port of Entry.

A Ukrainian minor’s separation from caregiver at San Diego border shows trauma behind policy

April 9, 2022 at 2:04 a.m.

After her family fled to Poland because of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Yelyzaveta Krasulia and her mother made a difficult decision — they would separate so that the mother could...

Tijuana, Baja California - April 6: Ukrainian refugees are bused from the Deportivo Benito Juarez shelter to the Chaparral border crossing to enter the U.S. on Wednesday, April 6, 2022 in Tijuana, Baja California. (Carlos Moreno / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

CBP comienza a procesar rapidamente a los ucranianos en el paso fronterizo de PedWest

April 7, 2022 at 1:15 p.m.

Los funcionarios de Aduanas y Protección Fronteriza están procesando ahora a los ucranianos que huyen de la invasión rusa de su país en la frontera entre San Diego y Tijuana...

CBP begins rapid processing of Ukrainians at PedWest border crossing

April 7, 2022 at 1:44 a.m.

Customs and Border Protection officials are now processing Ukrainians fleeing Russia’s invasion of their country at the San Diego-Tijuana border through a pedestrian crossing that remains closed to the general...

San Diego, CA - June 16: Andrea Guerrero, Janine Bouey and Mike Marrinan speak during a press conference at Alliance San Diego on Wednesday, June 16, 2021 in San Diego, CA. Janine Bouey is a former LAPD officer that is filing a lawsuit against CBP because she was sexually assaulted. (Jarrod Valliere / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Veteran and ex-LA police officer’s lawsuit alleges racial profiling, abuse at San Diego border

April 5, 2022 at 10:58 p.m.

A former Los Angeles Police Department officer and U.S. Army veteran sued Customs and Border Protection on Monday, alleging racial profiling and sexual abuse while she was crossing the border.Janine...

Located in south San Diego, the Otay Mesa Detention Center where immigrant detainees awaiting court proceedings are housed.

Inmigrantes detenidos en San Diego alegan mala conducta sexual por parte de un empleado

April 3, 2022 at 8:26 p.m.

Varios hombres detenidos por inmigración en San Diego dijeron que en una mañana reciente, un miembro del personal del centro entró en sus celdas sin previo aviso para mirarles lascivamente.Cuatro...

Men held at San Diego immigration detention center allege sexual misconduct by staff member

April 2, 2022 at 12:01 p.m.

Several men held in immigration custody in San Diego said that on a recent morning, a facility staff member walked into their cells unannounced to stare at them lewdly.Four men,...

Tijuana, BC - March 31: A volunteer reads out loud the names of Ukrainian families that are next in line to meet with U.S. Customs and Border Protection to request asylum at San Ysidro Port of Entry on Thursday, March 31, 2022 in Tijuana, BC. (Adriana Heldiz / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Cientos de ucranianos esperan en Tijuana para pedir proteccion en Estados Unidos

April 1, 2022 at 11:14 p.m.

TIJUANA — Una parada de autobús cerca de la garita de San Ysidro en Tijuana alberga a cientos de ucranianos que esperan solicitar asilo en Estados Unidos, tras huir de la invasión...

Hundreds of Ukrainians are waiting in Tijuana to request protection in the United States

April 1, 2022 at 11:10 p.m.

A bus stop near the entrance to the San Ysidro Port of Entry in Tijuana has filled with hundreds of Ukrainians waiting to request protection in the United States after...

Tijuana, Baja California - March 15: Asylum seekers from Russia and some from Guerrero and Michoacan wait at the San Ysidro Port of Entry hoping to cross into the United States on Tuesday, March 15, 2022 in Tijuana, Baja California. People from Ukraine were able enter the U.S. but other asylum seekers, including Russians, were turned away. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

CDC says controversial border policy keeping out asylum seekers will end in May

April 1, 2022 at 9:31 p.m.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has moved to end a controversial border policy that kept thousands of asylum seekers from requesting protection in the United States over the...

Tijuana, Baja California - March 09: After the tent camp at Chaparral was taken down several families seek shelter. A woman cooks a chicken stew next to the tents at Albergue Agape on Wednesday, March 9, 2022 in Tijuana, Baja California. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Tras demolicion de campamento en Tijuana, migrantes estan en refugios, departamentos y mas tiendas de campana

March 27, 2022 at 10:36 p.m.

Desde que ella y otros cientos de solicitantes de asilo fueron expulsados de un campamento situado frente al puerto de entrada de San Ysidro, en Tijuana, Vanessa ha tenido dos...

After officials bulldozed a Tijuana tent camp, migrants ended up in shelters, apartments and more tents

March 27, 2022 at 12:01 p.m.

Ever since she and hundreds of other asylum-seekers were forced from a camp outside the San Ysidro Port of Entry in Tijuana, Vanessa has worked two jobs — attendant at...

Tijuana, Baja California - March 21:A group asylum seekers and advocates walk to San Ysidro Pedestrian East Port of Entry in protest of Title 42 on Monday, March 21, 2022 in Tijuana, Baja California. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Solicitantes de asilo en Tijuana protestan por disparidades de trato en la frontera de Estados Unidos

March 22, 2022 at 1:17 a.m.

Tijuana — Los solicitantes de asilo y sus partidarios marcharon el lunes hacia la frontera entre San Diego y Tijuana en una manifestación contra la política fronteriza que ha impedido que miles...

Asylum seekers in Tijuana protest disparities in treatment at U.S. border

March 22, 2022 at 1:22 a.m.

Tijuana — Asylum seekers and their ers marched toward the San Diego-Tijuana border on Monday in demonstration against a border policy that has kept thousands from being able to request protection in...

Tijuana, Baja California - March 15: A man from Ukraine crosses through San Ysidro Port of Entry into the United States on Tuesday, March 15, 2022 in Tijuana, Baja California. He spent a day in Tijuana. People from Ukraine were able enter the U.S. but other asylum seekers, including Russians, were turned away. (Ana Ramirez / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Ukrainians only: Racial disparities in U.S. border policies grow more obvious

March 20, 2022 at 3:33 a.m.

Three Ukrainians — a married couple and a man traveling alone — walked up to the San Ysidro Port of Entry earlier this week to request asylum.In doing so, they...

Noemi Librado-Sanchez uses a tablet to work on "First Time Home," a documentary she made with her family about visiting Oaxaca, Mexico, where her family is from, for the first time.

Visitaron a un abuelo enfermo en Oaxaca, y encontraron trozos de sus propias identidades en el proceso

March 19, 2022 at 5:30 a.m.

Cuando Noemí Librado-Sánchez, su hermana y dos primos decidieron viajar al sur de México desde sus hogares en California y Washington para visitar a un abuelo enfermo al que nunca...

They visited an ailing grandfather in Oaxaca, and found pieces of their own identities in the process

March 18, 2022 at 12:01 p.m.

When Noemi Librado-Sanchez, her sister and two cousins first decided to travel to southern Mexico from their homes in California and Washington to visit an ailing grandparent they had never...

A Ukrainian family waits to enter the United States on Wednesday, March 8. 2022.

Una familia ucraniana que huye de la guerra logra entrar a los Estados Unidos tras ser rechazada dos veces

March 11, 2022 at 10:36 p.m.

El día después de que una familia ucraniana que huía de la invasión rusa fuera rechazada de la frontera de San Diego por segunda vez, los funcionarios permitieron a la...

Ukrainian family fleeing war allowed into U.S. after being turned away twice

March 11, 2022 at 1:35 a.m.

The day after a Ukrainian family fleeing the Russian invasion was turned away from the San Diego border for the second time, officials allowed the family onto U.S. soil.A 34-year-old...

Una familia ucraniana que huye de la invasion rusa es rechazada en la frontera con Estados Unidos

March 10, 2022 at 8:42 p.m.

Los funcionarios de la frontera de Estados Unidos en San Diego rechazaron el miércoles a una familia ucraniana que intentaba pedir asilo ante la invasión rusa.La madre de 34 años,...

Ukrainian family fleeing Russian invasion turned away from U.S. border

March 11, 2022 at 1:42 a.m.

U.S. border officials in San Diego on Wednesday turned away a Ukrainian family that was trying to seek asylum from the Russian invasion.The 34-year-old mother, who asked to be identified...

Detainees with severe mental health conditions claim mistreatment by Otay Mesa psychologist

March 8, 2022 at 5:05 p.m.

Advocacy groups are asking the state of California to take away a psychologist's license to practice after a dozen people held in immigration custody at Otay Mesa Detention Center complained...

Tijuana, Baja California - April 08: A Mexican government van drops off asylum seekers at Templo Embajadores De Jesus on Thursday, April 8, 2021 in Tijuana, Baja California (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

Court order restricts where federal government can expel asylum seekers

March 5, 2022 at 1:13 a.m.

A of federal appellate judges issued an order Friday restricting where U.S. government officials can expel asylum seekers under a pandemic policy known as Title 42.In the class-action case...

FILE - In this Nov. 28, 2018, file photo, the Department of Justice seal is seen in Washington, D.C. An internet firm is ending the automated registration of website names that include words or phrases related to the COVID-19 pandemic, in an attempt to combat coronavirus-related fraud. Los Angeles-based Namecheap Inc. made the pledge after a federal judge in Texas on Sunday, March 22, 2020, ordered the takedown of a website the U.S. Department of Justice accused of stealing credit card information while offering fake coronavirus vaccine kits. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)

Immigration court pushes new asylum seekers to front of the line, challenging them to find lawyers

March 1, 2022 at 7:12 a.m.

When the immigration judge asked the husband and wife if they wanted to appeal her decision to terminate the removal proceedings against their child, who recently died, they turned to...

Tijuana, Baja California - February 15: Refugee Health Alliance clinic helps with medical conditions both chronic and acute in Zona Norte on Tuesday, Feb. 15, 2022 in Tijuana, Baja California. (Alejandro Tamayo / The San Diego Union-Tribune)

A ninos que necesitan atencion medica por gravedad se les niega la entrada a EUA, a pesar de las recomendaciones de medicos

February 21, 2022 at 7:12 p.m.

La fila para la clínica gratuita que atiende a las familias migrantes en Tijuana comienza antes del amanecer.Tras la apertura de la clínica, su personal, una mezcla de empleados y...

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