Latest news with #NCIC
Hans India
3 days ago
- Politics
- Hans India
Trump Administration escalates crackdown on international students
Across the country, foreign students are caught in a whirlwind of lawsuits, counteractions, reversals, and widespread uncertainty as the Trump administration intensifies its efforts to restrict international enrollment. What's the latest? On Wednesday, a federal judge extended an injunction preventing the administration's recent effort to bar Harvard from admitting students born outside the United States. Since March, U.S. authorities have canceled or revoked the visas of at least 4,700 international students, and several high-profile individuals have even been detained. In the last fortnight, scattered injunctions have protected students in multiple states, and some detained scholars have been released from Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody. At the same time, the State Department confirmed it is 'aggressively' targeting additional Chinese academics over national security concerns. Despite setbacks in the courts, the administration has pursued new policies. An internal State Department cable obtained by NBC News revealed that consulates have halted scheduling new student visa interviews. Concurrently, officials are preparing to widen social media vetting of visa applicants. Shortly thereafter, Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the government intends to revoke visas held by Chinese students 'with connections to the Chinese Communist Party or studying in critical fields.' Details regarding which academic disciplines qualify as 'critical' or what constitutes links to the CCP remain unclear. When pressed, State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce emphasized that visa procedures are confidential but asserted that these measures protect U.S. interests: 'We use every tool that we have to vet and to make sure we know who's coming in,' she said. 'In this particular case, the United States is putting America first by beginning to revoke visas of Chinese students as warranted.' How did the administration revoke students' visas and statuses? For months, universities and their international enrollees scrambled to understand why visas were abruptly terminated without warning. In late April, the Department of Homeland Security disclosed that it had run the names of 1.3 million foreign-born students through the FBI's National Crime Information Center (NCIC). That search generated approximately 6,400 'hits,' and many of those flagged saw their records expunged from the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System (SEVIS), which tracks all nonimmigrant students and exchange visitors. Civil rights and immigration experts warned that using NCIC risked false positives, since the database depends on voluntary local reporting and does not always update final case outcomes. At an April hearing, Justice Department attorney Elizabeth D. Kurlan acknowledged these concerns, stating that ICE would no longer terminate students' statuses based solely on NCIC findings. She assured the court that, pending a new review process, students whose SEVIS records were canceled would have their legal status reinstated. Nevertheless, an internal memo circulated among SEVIS staff expanded the criteria for terminating a student's status. Effective immediately, any visa revocation issued by the State Department would automatically trigger termination of SEVIS status. While students generally have a right to due process before losing legal status, visa cancellation now itself suffices to end a student's authorized stay. The administration has also zeroed in on students involved in pro-Palestinian protests. Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil and Tufts University scholar Rümeysa Öztürk were both detained in March after participating in demonstrations; Öztürk was released from ICE custody weeks later. At a March news conference, Rubio vowed, 'Every time I find one of these lunatics, I take away their visas.' Has anyone successfully challenged the administration? From Georgia to South Dakota, international students have won court victories, with judges blocking the government's attempts to strip their legal status. Last week, a federal court issued a nationwide injunction preventing the administration from terminating the statuses of students enrolled at any U.S. university. This is the first ruling to offer relief to foreign students across all campuses.
Time of India
5 days ago
- Politics
- Time of India
HC upholds new recruitment rules for ITI jr instructor
Jaipur: Rajasthan High Court has dismissed a series of petitions filed by guest faculty instructors who challenged amended recruitment rules for 1,821 posts of junior instructor in govt-run Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs). The decision has cleared the way for the recruitment process to continue. The court upheld Rajasthan govt's decision to mandate National Craft Instructor Certificate (NCIC) under Crafts Instructor Training Scheme (CITS) as a necessary qualification. The court called it fair, legal, and consistent with Union govt's policy. The case stemmed from a notification issued Sept 1, 2023, followed by a recruitment advertisement on March 11, 2024, by Rajasthan Staff Selection Board (RSSB). The petitioners, currently working as guest faculty in ITIs, argued that the new requirement for NCIC was introduced without enough time for them to complete the year-long certification. They claimed the change was abrupt, lacked legislative backing, and conflicted with a Union govt office memorandum dated June 30, 2023. They also said the move violated their fundamental rights. Addl advocate general Vigyan Shah, who represented the Rajasthan govt, backed by the Union govt and the RSSB, argued that the new rules were lawful and aligned with national vocational training standards. The govt cited guidelines from the National Council for Vocational Training, which recommended the NCIC since 2014. The division bench of Justice Inderjeet Singh and Justice Anand Sharma concluded that Rajasthan govt had the authority to amend the recruitment rules. The court said the rules were not arbitrary, nor did they conflict with the Union govt's guidelines. It also noted that the rules provided flexibility in allowing candidates to obtain certification after selection.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Carteret County officials request help in locating missing Newport woman
CARTERET COUNTY, N.C. (WNCT) — Officials with the Carteret County Sheriff's Office are seeking help in locating a missing woman. Kelly Warren Lockhart, 52, of Newport, N.C. was last seen on Wednesday, May 28, at around 7pm. She was stated to have been experiencing some mental health issues at the time when she was last seen. Photo courtesy of Carteret County Sheriff's Office of Kelly Warren Lockhart. Kelly is 5'02' tall, weighs approximately 200 pounds, has brown hair, and blue eyes. She was reported to be operating a white 2017 Jeep Renegade with a NC License Plate 'LHN6077.' Her destination and direction of travel are unknown at this time. Kelly has been entered into NCIC as a missing person. If you have any information regarding this incident or Kelly's whereabouts, contact Carteret County Emergency Communications Center at 252-726-1911, lead investigator is Det. Cory Bishop. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
County commission asked to look at creating pawnshop ordinance
princeton – A ordinance connecting pawnshops to an easier way for reporting potentially stolen guns and other times to law enforcement has been proposed to the Mercer County Commission. Capt. Steven Sommers with the Mercer County Sheriff's Department spoke Tuesday afternoon with the commissioners about how pawnbrokers can better work with his department. 'This is just a request for the county commission to reevaluate, with some of the new commissioners, a pawnshop ordinance,' Sommers said. 'The ordinance would mimic state code, but what we're looking for is that ordinance designate the sheriff as the individual responsible for designating to the pawnbrokers how they are to electronically record. For the last nine years we have been using Leads Online, which as law enforcement, we have to pay for that; but Leads Online allows us to search names, serial numbers, description of any pawned items, scrapped items nationwide, regionally or within the county.' Pawnshops now report pawned items either on a paper form, an Excel spreadsheet or by fax, Sommers said. This includes reporting pawned firearms. 'Leads Online is connected to NCIC (National Crime Information Center) so any known serial number that is reported to NCIC is automatically reported as a post about a possible stolen item for investigation,' Sommers said. Pawnbrokers can sign up to Leads Online for free. 'Leads Online will accept and digest just about any format that a pawn broker has to get that information online and they can do it absolutely free,' Sommers said. 'The only people that pay are law enforcement, so I just ask that the county revisit and look at a pawn shop ordinance.' Sommers called Leads Online access 'a force multiplier' for the sheriff's department. 'Instead of making 100 phone calls or traveling five, six, seven, eight, 10 different pawnshops, if everybody's reporting from the computer in a keystroke, we can see if the item we are looking for is at any of the pawnshops and even initiate a case and initiate a request with the pawnshop from the computer and hey, this is stolen property and we believe it is and we are on our way,' he said. Commission President Bill Archer said that a county pawnshop ordinance had been addressed back in 2021, but one was never implemented. Archer asked Sommers if the commission could get sample ordinances from other places. Sommers said the commission should have a copy of Kanawha County's pawnshop ordinance and he could get a copy of the one used in Barboursville, a town in Cabell County. Commissioner Greg Puckett asked if the sample ordinances could be changed over to what Mercer County could use and then given to Prosecuting Attorney Brian K. Cochran for review to make sure the county is complying with state code. Once the commission is sure the proposed ordinance is in compliance, it could be presented for consideration. Sommers said the county's cities should be asked about participating in Leads Online, too. The ordinance could be presented in June and it would have to go through two public readings before it is enacted, Puckett said. Contact Greg Jordan at gjordan@
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Yahoo
Missing children reports up locally
May 20—LIMA — Allen County authorities processed 182 missing children reports in 2024, according to a new report issued by Attorney General Dave Yost on Monday. That's up 12 compared to the 170 seen in 2023's report. The state's annual missing children report provides an overview of the 16,404 children reported missing to Ohio law enforcement agencies last year. Ninety-six percent of children reported missing were accounted for by year's end, while three children were found deceased and others remained missing, the report found. "Every missing person is someone to somebody — a child, sibling, loved one or friend," Yost said in a news release accompanying the report. "I am proud of the dedication shown by Ohio law enforcement to keep Ohio's children safe and commit that my office will continue to do everything in its power to support that mission." Auglaize County increased from nine reports in 2023 to 11 in 2024. Van Wert County increased, with nine in 2024 compared to seven in 2023. Hardin County also went up, to 30 in 2024 from 24 in 2023. Putnam County was the only area county with a decrease, with one report in 2024, compared to two in 2023. The report is a joint effort between local law enforcement agencies and the National Crime Information Center, a missing person and criminal information database operated by the U.S. Department of Justice. Law enforcement agencies create a missing person report whenever a child goes missing. That information is entered into the NCIC database, which is accessible to other law enforcement agencies, and is updated once a child is found. Law enforcement agencies received 1,001 fewer missing children reports last year than in 2023, according to the report. More than half of the missing children reports involved runaway children, or children who left home without permission and stayed away overnight, accounting for 8,415 cases in 2024. Another 37 cases involved abductions by a non-custodial parent, while nine missing children reports involved abductions by strangers, according to the report. Law enforcement agencies issued 13 AMBER alerts and 17 endangered missing children alerts last year. Two of those children were deceased by the time law enforcement located them. All others were recovered safely, according to the report. 2024 MISSING CHILD REPORT BY COUNTY Allen County: 182 Auglaize County: 11 Hardin County: 30 Putnam County: 1 Van Wert County: 9 Source: Ohio Missing Child Clearinghouse Report, 2024 Featured Local Savings
