|
and a U.S. citizen wife. Alejandro had a traumatic childhood: he never knew his father and spent his
<br />childhood working on the streets in Mexico, trying to support his mother. When he came to the U.S., he
<br />was 19 years old, became addicted to drugs, and was convicted of a felony after selling drugs to an
<br />undercover police officer. Years later, after turning his life around, Alejandro was having a loud
<br />argument with his wife. The neighbor called the police and Alejandro was arrested, even though his wife
<br />insisted that there was no physical harm. He was transferred to ICE custody from criminal custody,
<br />where he remained in detention for several months without counsel. Eventually, he found his way to
<br />ImmDef, which fought for his case by filing several motions for relief. During his immigration hearing,
<br />the immigration judge denied Alejandro's application while being hostile to Alejandro. The ImmDef
<br />attorney made sure to note that behavior on the record, so that Alejandro could raise it on appeal.
<br />ImmDef is now working to get him released on bond so that he can be home with family and work while
<br />his case is on appeal.
<br />*Names have been changed to protect clients' privacy.
<br />Endnotes
<br />'The Safety and Fairness for Everyone (SAFE) Initiative includes Alameda County, CA; Atlanta, GA; Austin, TX; Baltimore,
<br />MD; Chicago, IL; Columbus, OH; Dallas, TX; Dane County, WI; Denver, CO; Long Beach, CA; Madison, WI; Oakland, CA;
<br />Philadelphia, PA; Prince George's County, MD; Ramsey County, MN; Sacramento, CA; San Antonio, TX; San Francisco, CA;
<br />Santa Ana, CA; and St. Paul, MN. Cook County, IL and New Haven, CT are also partnered with SAFE and striving towards
<br />public funding for removal defense. For additional information, see Vera Institute of Justice, "Safety and Fairness for
<br />Everyone (SAFE) Initiative," vera.org/safe-Initiative. For more on universal representation, see Vera Institute of Justice,
<br />"Advancing Universal Representation: A Toolkit for Advocates, Organizers, Legal Service Providers, and Policymakers,"
<br />https://www.vera.org/advancing-u niversal-representation-toolkit.
<br />z On the labyrinthine nature of immigration law, see Drax v. Reno, 338 F.3d 98, 99 (2d Cir. 2003). See also Noel Brennan, "A
<br />View from the Immigration Bench," Fordham Law Review 78, no. 2 (2009), 623-31, 624,
<br />http://ir.lawnet.fordham.edu/cgi/viewcontent. cgi?article=4479&context=flr. To read the remarks from Immigration Judge
<br />Dana Leigh Marks, see Dana Leigh Marks, "Immigration judge: Death penalty cases in a traffic court setting," CNN (June 26,
<br />2014), https:Hperma.cc/SXV6- BKZN.
<br />3 Ingrid V. Eagly and Steven Shafer, "A National Study of Access to Counsel in Immigration Court," University of Pennsylvania
<br />Law Review, 164, no. 1 (2015), 1-91, 22, https://perma.cc/82F5-WE2D
<br />4 The representation rate in immigration court fluctuates slightly over time. Historically, 81 percent of detained immigrants
<br />have lacked representation —between October 2000 and November 2019, 81 percent of all people in
<br />detention had never been represented (1,237,252 of 1,526,419 cases). The rate has improved slightly over the past two
<br />decades, with approximately 70 percent unrepresented in recent years —between October 2012 and November 2019, 70
<br />percent of all people in detention had never been represented (327,828 of 466,756 cases), with the exact percentage
<br />varying slightly from year to year. See Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), "Details on Deportation
<br />Proceedings in Immigration Court," accessed January 13, 2020, https://trac.syr.edu/phptools/immigration/nta/.
<br />5 Of the nearly 9,000 detained cases (N=8,920) heard before the Adelanto Immigration Court over the previous five fiscal
<br />years (FY15 through FY19), over 6,500 (or 74 percent) were without the assistance of counsel (N=6,576). These numbers do
<br />not include individuals whose cases have been re -categorized as "released" after being granted bond. See Transactional
<br />Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC), "Details on Deportation Proceedings in Immigration Court," accessed March 22,
<br />2021, https://trac.svr.edu/phptools/immigration/nta/.
<br />e Erica Bryant, "Detention May Become Death Sentence for Vulnerable Detainees." Vera Institute of Justice, March 25,
<br />2020, https://www.vera.org/blog/covid-19-1/detention-may-become-death-sentence-for-vulnerable-detainees.
<br />Vera Center on Immigration+Justice 7
<br />
|