! (with a special focus on if they have resided in and been a contributing member of their community), and involvement in community programs. The letter should also address any education that the individual has achieved in the United States, lawful work, taxes paid, and other contributions. Criminal history: Where relevant, include information on any criminal convictions the individual has. The applicant’s age at the time of conviction and any sentences or fines that resulted from a conviction may also be included as evidence of the seriousness, or lack thereof, of the crime.119 ! Deferred action request: The letter should be explicit in the DA request. It should set out that the stateless individual is seeking a long-term DA grant, and that she will not benefit from DA without work authorization. It may be helpful to include a reminder of the requirement for a notice if DA is approved and ask that the work authorization be spelled out in the letter granting DA. ! Supporting publications: Consider including any memoranda or other publications that will inform the process. ! Letters of support: If possible, obtain letters from the community, church, government officials such as a deportation officer, and organizations working on statelessness issues that express support for a DA grant and explain why it is especially critical in this stateless individual’s case. ! Supporting evidence: Provide documentation to support factual assertions. This could include prior work authorization, statelessness determination letters, country of origin information, proof of consistently filing taxes, history of donations or volunteerism in the community, photos of the individual with family in the United States, and education history. Additionally, if the stateless individual has a statelessness status determination by UNHCR, this should be included. Practice Point Because there are no appeals, it is helpful to address every aspect of the client’s documented history – both the negative factors, such as a criminal conviction and any equities for DA including rehabilitation since a criminal conviction, as well as the positive. It can be useful to call the field office to which the DA has been sent on a periodic basis to see if a decision has been reached. 2. Submitting the DA Request to USCIS or ICE The following provides basic procedural guidance for submitting a request for DA to USCIS or ICE, depending on the posture of a stateless person’s case. Two documents listed below provide particular See U.S. DEP’T OF JUSTICE IMMIGRATION AND NATURALIZATION SERVICE, DORIS MEISSNER, EXERCISING PROSECUTORIAL DISCRETION, (Nov. 17, 2000), available at http://iwp.legalmomentum.org/reference/additionalmaterials/immigration/enforcement-detention-and-criminal-justice/government-documents/22092970-INS-Guidance-MemoProsecutorial-Discretion-Doris-Meissner-11-7-00.pdf/view. Please note that the validity of this memorandum is uncertain at the time of this writing. This memorandum may have been rescinded by the January 25, 2017 Executive Order “Border Security and Immigration Enforcement Improvements” and its February 20, 2017 implementing memorandum. EXEC. ORDER NO. 13767, 82 Fed. Reg. 8793 (Jan. 25, 2017); U.S. DEP’T OF HOMELAND SECURITY, JOHN KELLY, ENFORCEMENT OF THE IMMIGRATION LAWS TO SERVE THE NATIONAL INTEREST, (Feb. 20, 2017) [hereinafter FEB. 20 IMPLEMENTING MEMORANDUM]. 119 26