[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 159 (2013), Part 1]
[Senate]
[Page 737]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                  TRIBUTE TO JUDGE ELIZABETH A. HACKER

 Mr. LEVIN. Madam President, public service is a noble 
endeavor, and there are many individuals across our great nation that 
dedicate their lives to making our communities better and function 
smoothly. I am pleased today to recognize the illustrious career of one 
such public servant, a talented and well-respected judge from my home 
State of Michigan. Elizabeth A. Hacker's legal career has spanned more 
than three decades, and her tenure on the bench has been defined by her 
sound judgment, wisdom, and expansive knowledge of the law.
  Judge Hacker is retiring from the Federal bench after 32 years of 
distinguished service to the Detroit Immigration court and to the U.S. 
Department of Justice. Her family, friends, and colleagues from the 
court and the Michigan bar gathered this past weekend to celebrate this 
milestone and to honor her distinguished career. I am delighted to 
honor her impressive record of public service to our Nation, the 
Justice Department, the City of Detroit and our great State of 
Michigan.
  Elizabeth Hacker is a proud daughter of Detroit. She received her 
B.A. from Wayne State University in 1974 and a law degree from the 
Detroit College of Law in 1978. Following a brief period in private 
practice, Judge Hacker joined the Detroit office of the Immigration and 
Naturalization Service in 1980. She rose quickly within the INS, 
serving as a naturalization attorney; a trial attorney; a chief 
attorney; and finally assistant regional counsel for the western region 
for three immigration districts, including Los Angeles, where she 
supervised dozens of other immigration attorneys.
  Elizabeth Hacker is currently the senior United States immigration 
judge for the Immigration Court with jurisdiction over Michigan, Ohio, 
and northern Kentucky. Notably, Judge Hacker re-established the Detroit 
Immigration Court when she was appointed to the bench in July of 1995.
  While affiliated with the Immigration Service, Judge Hacker acted as 
an instructor at both Federal law enforcement training academies, 
teaching a range of subjects, including the law of arrest, search and 
seizure, employer sanctions and general immigration law.
  During her long tenure on the Detroit Immigration Court, Judge Hacker 
handled numerous noteworthy and high-profile cases, many of which were 
covered extensively by the news media. Of particular note was the role 
she played in the deportation of Nazi war criminals that were 
discovered residing in the United States living under false pretenses.
  In 2011, Judge Hacker wrote the opinion in the trial of Ivan Kalymon 
for his participation in Nazi-sponsored acts of persecution while 
serving as an armed member of the Ukrainian Auxiliary Police during 
World War II. Hacker ordered Kalymon deported.
  In the months following the attacks of September 2001, Judge Hacker 
handled several cases involving terrorists and terrorist organizations 
plotting in the United States. Many high-stakes cases came before her 
court. Her colleagues on immigration courts across the country came to 
rely on her expertise and experience. They would frequently solicit her 
opinion on complex matters involving national security.
  Her colleague on the bench, Judge Marsha Nettles, describes Judge 
Hacker as someone who ensured that everyone who came before her 
``received a full, fair and complete hearing. She never forgot the 
mission of the Immigration Service or the Court. She always put the 
mission first, no matter the public pressure or media scrutiny.''
  By all accounts, Judge Hacker is looking forward to her retirement 
and to spending more time on Grosse Ile with her loving husband Brian 
Munson and doing more cooking, which outside of the law, is her true 
life's passion.
  Judge Hacker is a trailblazer. Through her tireless dedication, sense 
of purpose and unfailing fidelity to the mission of the Justice 
Department and the court, Elizabeth Hacker has set a high standard. I 
know my colleagues join me in congratulating Elizabeth Hacker as she 
concludes her long and distinguished legal career.

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