Lutheran Social Services of New York

Transcription

1 Lutheran Social Services of New York Overview of Achievements, The Survivors of Violence Immigration Initiative at Lutheran Social Services of New York s Immigration Legal Program (LSSNY-ILP) provides immigration legal assistance to survivors of violence in the New York City metropolitan area, whether the violence occurred abroad or here in the United States. These survivors include individuals who have suffered politically- and religiously-motivated violence, victims of female genital mutilation ( FGM ) or forced marriage, survivors of domestic abuse, unaccompanied minors, and certain survivors of crime in the United States. During the grant year (FY 2017), LSSNY-ILP provided immigration legal services that benefitted more than 1,700 individuals, including retained clients and their family members. Our office closed a total of 1,306 cases, including consultations and brief legal assistance, representation in Immigration Court and Family Court, and applications for legal status and work authorization, among others. Over the course of the year, LSSNY-ILP helped 7 individuals obtain asylum or other relief from persecution, obtained citizenship for 36 individuals, and lawful permanent residence for 64 individuals. A total of 13 immigration court cases were closed, and 18 minors obtained special findings in Family Court, allowing them to pursue lawful permanent residence. In September 2016, two Immigrant Justice Corps fellows joined LSSNY-ILP s staff. The Immigrant Justice Corps awards two-year fellowships to recent law graduates who have a demonstrated commitment to provide legal services to indigent immigrants. Throughout their fellowship, each fellow is committed to taking on 50 complex immigration cases. The addition of the fellows will lessen the number of individuals we are required to turn away due to capacity and resource constraints during their two year contracts. Immigrant Survivors of Violence are often isolated, even within their own communities. To reach out to them, LSSNY- ILP held presentations on immigration law at communitybased organizations, schools and case management programs that reached 1,169 people. For many, the help received from LSSNY-ILP in gaining legal status represents the first step towards a safe and stable life in the United States. Service Area: New York City Metropolitan Area This Provider At a Glance Population Served: Low Income Immigrants and Refugees Area Served: New York City Metropolitan Area Total Funding: $803,462 Total IOLA Grant: $50,000 Staffing - Full Time Equivalents Total Staff: 7.90 Lawyers: 3.90 Paralegals: 1.00 Other Staff: 3.00 Types of Services Provided Direct Civil Legal Representation Brief Services Extended Services Hotlines and Other Phone-Based Services Technology and Other Innovations Community Legal Education Pro Se Assistance Collaborations With Other Service Providers Major Cases or Other Advocacy Projects Lutheran Social Services of New York - 1

2 Outcomes 1,743 Individuals Benefited from 1,306 Closed Direct Civil Legal Cases Extended Representation Outcomes 473 People benefited from extended representation Brief Representation Benefits 1,270 People benefited from legal advice and counsel Examples... Outcomes for Clients n FY 2017, LSSNY-ILP represented NT, a young Tibetan activist from India. NT fled India after authorities there I persecuted him for engaging in anti-china and pro-tibet activities. NT left behind his wife and infant child and fled to the United States, where he surrendered to immigration authorities and requested asylum. When LSSNY-ILP met and retained NT, his first court date had been scheduled such that his asylum application would be time-barred. We filed a Motion to Advance NT s hearing date to preserve his right to seek asylum, which the Immigration Court granted. We then worked with NT to gather evidence of his persecution and we prepared NT to testify about his ordeal and provided mock cross examinations. In July 2016, the New York Immigration Court granted NT asylum. LSSNY- ILP immediately filed petitions on behalf of NT s wife and son, which are still pending. NT aspires to become politically active again, once his family is safely in the U.S. n FY 2017, LSSNY-ILP represented CBD, an unaccompanied minor who fled Honduras after being kidnapped, I raped, and beaten by her boyfriend and her boyfriend s father. CBD was presenting severe mental health symptoms resulting from her traumatic experiences when she met and began working with LSSNY-ILP. She exhibited despondency and forgetfulness, which created significant challenges in preparing and filing her asylum application. After countless meetings, LSSNY-ILP filed CBD s application with the New York Asylum Office. LSSNY-ILP continued to work with CBD up until her interview date at the asylum office, preparing her testimony and acquiring additional evidence. At the interview, CBD was represented by her LSSNY-ILP attorney and a volunteer interpreter LSSNY-ILP procured. Two weeks later, CBD learned that she was granted asylum. CBD s life has changed dramatically since acquiring asylum. She is currently pursuing both her G.E.D. as well as a home attendant certification. She aspires to eventually be able to go to college and become a nurse. Breakdown of Cases by Legal Problem Area People Cases Total 1,743 1,306 Advice & Counsel 1, Adjustment of Legal Status Employment Authorization Other Advice & Counsel 73% Adjustment of Legal Status 5% Employment Authorization 6% Other 16% Lutheran Social Services of New York - 2

3 Other Services Technology and Other Innovations LSSNY uses ImmigrantPro software, a computer-based program which allows staff to have the most up-to-date versions of all immigration forms, and to quickly and efficiently complete multiple immigration forms for the same client or related family members. The software regularly updates as USCIS and the Executive Office for Immigration Review updates their immigration forms. LSSNY-ILP attorneys use a custom-built Microsoft Access Database to track all interactions with clients, and to keep client contact information and case data information organized and easily accessible to all attorneys. LSSNY-ILP, with the help of a volunteer with extensive knowledge of computer systems, has continually collaborate to improve the functioning and efficiency of the Database. The revisions to the Database allow staff to generate more complete reports of client demographics and case information. Communication among staff regarding client status is improved and client case data is more organized. Legal Services Other Than Direct Legal Representation Although LSSNY-ILP routinely provides extensive community legal education to immigrant communities throughout the five boroughs, our efforts significantly amplified after the presidential election. We have longstanding relationships with various churches, schools, and community based organizations throughout the five boroughs, and received a large number of requests for know your rights presentations and informational sessions. We also provide monthly know your rights presentations to immigrants who were recently released from family detention centers. In total, we reached 1,169 individuals through these services, which included Know Your Rights presentations to ESL classes, parents at public schools, parishioners at churches, and immigrant communities in specific neighborhoods such as Afghans in Fresh Meadows and Haitians in Flatbush. We additionally authored and even illustrated a Know Your Rights pamphlet in English and Spanish, and approximately 1,370 copies of it have been disseminated by our staff and community partners. Although we prefer to represent individuals, we aim to provide pro se assistance when an individual has a straightforward need. During FY 2017 we provided pro see assistance to approximately 94 individuals. This assistance including advising on how to prepare Change of Venue of Immigration Court motions, change of address requests with immigration courts and USCIS, and, after the election, powers of attorney and guardianship forms for parents who feared deportation and separation from their children. Collaborations With Other Service Providers LSSNY-ILP works closely with many other providers and organizations, including two programs accredited by the Board of Immigration Appeals the Bellevue/NYU Program for Survivors of Torture ( PSOT ) and the Ansob Center for Refugees ( Ansob ). With both programs, LSSNY-ILP attorneys supervise the work of the accredited representatives through weekly supervision. We additionally staff a weekly clinic at Ansob Center in Astoria, where we provide legal assistance on the Center s most complex cases. LSSNY-ILP closely collaborated with Haitian Women for Haitian Refugees (HWHR), during FY 2017, by providing a series of Know Your Rights workshops. Towards the end of last year, the U.S. saw an increase in Haitian arrivals at the southern border. Many of these Haitians were detained and then paroled into the country to attend removal proceedings. Although Haitian immigrants qualify for employment authorization as well as public assistance, the organizations that received federal funding to administer public assistance were reluctant to assist these immigrants in acquiring employment authorization, despite having immigration programs in house. LSSNY-ILP was informed of the problem by HWHR, and began conducting a series of Know Your Rights presentations and employment authorization clinics to recent Haitian arrivals. So far, we have conducted 6 workshops for the Haitian community, and we will continue to conduct them as long as the need exists. LSSNY-ILP additionally began a partnership with Women for Afghan Women (WAW), a community based nonprofit in Fresh Meadows, Queens. Through this partnership, we staff a weekly naturalization clinic at their site and prepare citizenship applications on behalf of students and family members of students at WAW. The majority of the clients served at WAW have been Afghani and Pakistani women who are additionally enrolled in English and citizenship classes on site. Number of People Benefited by Legal Services Other Than Direct Legal Representation Total: 2,633 People Community Legal Education and Pro Se Assistance: 2,633 People Lutheran Social Services of New York - 3

4 Other Services, continued Backup or Support Services In addition to the collaborations mentioned above, LSSNY-ILP also provides support services to the accredited representatives at the Ansob Center and PSOT. LSSNY-ILP attorneys answer questions from the Ansob Center and PSOT outside of regularly scheduled supervision, and provide consultations to both the Ansob Center and PSOT on any complicated cases. LSSNY-ILP also supports the immigration program of the Mennonite Immigration Program (MIP), whose paralegal provides immigration consultations at an MIP church one day per week and then spends one day a week in the LSSNY-ILP office. LSSNY-ILP reviews all the work done by the paralegal at the church and ensures that applications are properly filed. The paralegal provides support to the LSSNY-ILP legal office once per week, and also receives mentoring and supervision during those times. LSSNY-ILP reviews any applications that are submitted on behalf of these clients. Major Cases or Other Advocacy Projects Matter of Axel S.D.C. v Elena A.C., 32 N.Y.S.3d 295 (N.Y. App. Div. 2d Dep't 2016) In May 2016, LSSNY-ILP appealed the denial of guardianship and special findings by Queens County Family Court to our client, Axel S.D.C. The appeal presented a novel issue before the Second Appellate Division: whether a child could be appointed a legal guardian who neither lived with nor provided financial support to the child. This issue has far reaching consequences, because guardianship is the vehicle by which most immigrant youth are able to acquire special findings orders that enable them to seek Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS) before USCIS. Many immigrant youth eligible for SIJS lack stable adult figures with whom they live, and instead rely on adults in their schools or churches for advice and emotional support. Axel, who fled parental abuse and gang-based violence in El Salvador, was a 20-year-old who lived with and cared for his infant son. The only stable adult figure in his life was his proposed guardian and high school guidance counselor, Daniel K. LSSNY-ILP was required to bring the appeal on an expedited basis, because the Queens Family Court denied Axel s applications a month before he turned 21 and aged out of relief. The Second Department Appellate Division agreed to hear the case within the short time frame, and after considering LSSNY-ILP s briefing and oral argument, reversed the lower court s decisions and granted guardianship and special findings. The decision has been hailed as a major victory amongst SIJS advocates. Although the decision does not specifically hold that guardianship may be appointed to guardians who neither live with nor provide financial support to children, LSSNY-ILP disseminated an attorney affirmation outlining the facts of the case, and advocates in New York have been able to cite to Matter of Axel with this affirmation in family courts throughout the state. We have heard of several cases where the family court initially expressed reluctance in granting guardianship until receiving this case cite. We believe that there is a significant number of SIJS-eligible children lacking stable adult figures in New York, and that the case has benefitted, at minimum, 40 individuals since its rendering. Pro Bono Volunteer Involvement LSSNY-ILP frequently works with pro bono attorneys, law students, and other volunteers in order to expand its capacity to accept cases. Volunteer attorneys assist clients at legal clinics, with complex applications, and in immigration court. Other volunteers serve as interpreters during client meetings, physician evaluations, and immigration interviews. Our office also works closely with volunteer physicians and psychiatrists throughout the city in order to obtain necessary evaluations of clients in support of their cases. One of the strengths of LSSNY-ILP s pro bono program is the office s flexibility in working with a wide variety of attorneys, from those employed by private firms to attorneys who work from home or in alternate settings. LSSNY-ILP is able to select cases that will match an attorney s skill set, experience, and desire for growth. Sources of Funding Total $803,462 IOLA Grant $50,000 LIRS $157,335 State Funding $130,987 LDR $224,017 Other $241,123 Lutheran Social Services of New York - 4 LDR 28% State Funding 16% Other 30% LIRS 20% IOLA Grant 6%

5 Other Services, continued Attorneys without the time to take on complex cases may come to legal clinics organized by LSSNY-ILP to assist clients, under supervision, for a day. This flexibility allows LSSNY-ILP to work with a wide variety of pro bono attorneys, to the great benefit of our clients. During the past fiscal year, LSSNY-ILP has worked with a total of 50 volunteers. Of that number, 16 were attorneys who provided pro bono assistance. There were also 3 law student interns, and 31 other volunteers who provided translation, technical assistance, and social service support to clients. LSSNY-ILP has several pro bono attorneys working on SIJS in both immigration and family courts at the firms of Paul Weiss, Herrik Feinstein and MoloLamken LLP. LSSNY-ILP is also mentoring a retired criminal defense attorney in filing affirmative asylum applications. Pro Bono Statistics During , the following volunteers provided services in our program: Attorneys: 16 Volunteers 600 Hours Law Students: 3 Volunteers 1,090 Hours Other Volunteers: 31 Volunteers 250 Hours Dollar Value of Attorney Services*: $150,000 *estimated at $250 per hour Lutheran Social Services of New York - 5