Senate Bill (SB) 6, or the Due Process for All Act, would provide legal
representation for individuals in removal proceedings who otherwise are
not entitled to counsel. As immigration proceedings are civil rather than
criminal in nature, the usual due process protections afforded to defendants
in criminal proceedings, including court-appointed counsel, do not apply
to them. Currently, immigrants involved in removal cases before the immigration
courts are not entitled to have an attorney appointed to represent them
if they cannot afford to hire their own lawyers. At present, only unaccompanied
and undocumented minors currently have the right to court-appointed counsel
when facing removal from the United States. This bill will ensure that
all eligible individuals present in the U.S. without legal status get
the due process protections that they deserve, which includes legal counsel
in removal proceedings. It also will help reduce the number of immigrants
removed without a proper trial and the length of time that immigrants
are detained. Under SB 6, the state of California would set up a California
Universal Representation Trust Fund containing $12 million to fund legal
representation for eligible individuals. The state would contract with
social services and non-profit legal services organizations in order to
provide the necessary legal representation, with first priority given
to immigrants who are detained awaiting removal from the country. State
Senator Ben Hueso, D-San Diego, authored the bill. According to research
provided by Hueso’s office, 68% of immigrants held in immigration
detention have no legal representation. In fact, an immigrant who is represented
by an immigration lawyer is five times more to be successful in defending
against deportation proceedings than an immigrant without legal representation.
A recent amendment to the bill, however, excludes immigrants with violent
felony convictions from participating in the program. If ICE has detained
a loved one, contacting an
experienced California immigration attorney
as quickly as possible can be essential securing his or her release and
fighting deportation. Taking steps to fix an immigration problem from
the outset is often much simpler than waiting until the last minute and
attempting to remedy the situation. Call
Landerholm Immigration, A.P.C., at (510) 756-4468 today, and learn what we can do to help you through
this situation.
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