As we witness new attacks on immigrants in our communities every day, access to counsel has never been more important.
Having solid legal advice in a quickly shifting landscape can mean the difference between an unjust deportation and a family staying together.
Last year, ICE agents came to Naomi’s home. ICE had previously allowed Naomi to stay in the United States because she has young children, but without any warning, ICE changed its position, detained her, and tried to deport her without any opportunity to see a judge. Naomi’s family called the Illinois Family Support Network Hotline and connected with NIJC’s detention team and the Midwest Immigrant Defenders Alliance (MIDA). ICE had already put Naomi on a plane to deport her when NIJC stepped in, stopped that flight, and reunited her with her family. Today, Naomi’s case has been completely terminated before the immigration court; she has status and is on a pathway to citizenship. None of this would have been possible if Naomi did not have an attorney. See more of Naomi’s story:
Here are 4 things to know about the importance of access to counsel in this moment.
- The data backs up what we see every day: programs that provide lawyers make a huge difference. The Vera Institute of Justice published a study on the impact of MIDA, the Illinois collaborative between NIJC and other organizations that expands access to legal representation for people in detention and that helped prevent Naomi’s deportation. Researchers found that legal representation increased a detained person’s odds of winning relief from deportation by 366%, and increased the likelihood of being released on bond by 46%. Vera reported that their analyses “show that the MIDA program had significant, positive impacts on clients’ cases and show the degree to which attorneys were the cause of the improved outcomes. The study reveals how universal legal representation programs can promote fairness and uphold due process within a complex immigration system.” NIJC’s Immigration Court Helpdesk plays a similar role for people who don’t have a lawyer, offering free walk-in orientations at the Chicago Immigration Court so people understand the process and their rights, support that’s increasingly vital as legal providers across the region report a growing share of immigrants being forced to navigate the system alone.
- Due process in immigration courts is under direct assault. Since the spring, NIJC has observed immigration courts in Chicago and Indianapolis holding “mega master” hearings, where the court crams dozens of people into a single hearing, often with little notice. As NIJC’s Director of Legal Services Lisa Koop put it, these hearings are “yet another attempt by this administration to hustle immigrants towards removal, disregard their rights, and avoid the case-by-case adjudication to which they are entitled.”
- The Trump administration has been gutting the infrastructure that connects people to legal services. The administration has stripped funding for legal orientation programs and representation programs for immigrant children, and NIJC is a named plaintiff in the lawsuit seeking to restore this funding. The administration has also dismantled the Department of Justice’s decades-old accredited representative program. These actions force more people, including children, to face detention and deportation completely alone.
- You can help support immigrants’ access to legal counsel and defend due process. The Fairness to Freedom Act would establish a universal right to federally funded legal representation for anyone facing deportation who can’t afford a lawyer. Tell Congress to support the Fairness to Freedom Act. You can also encourage Congress to include federal funding for the Legal Orientation Program, which includes funding for the Immigration Court Helpdesk. Tell Congress to approve funding for legal representation for families in our communities. Both of these actions are hosted by the Fairness to Freedom Campaign organized by the Vera Institute of Justice and the National Partnership for New Americans.
The evidence is clear: representation changes outcomes, and positive outcomes change lives, just like it did for Naomi and her family. NIJC’s legal professionals are on the front lines, in detention centers, in courtrooms, at the Immigration Court Helpdesk, and in coalition with partners across the region, doing everything we can to make sure due process survives this moment.
Julia Toepfer is associate director of digital communications at NIJC.