First Death in Immigration Detention in Fiscal Year 2018 Takes Place in Aurora
"RMIAN mourns the death of Mr. Samimi, whose preliminary cause of death is cardiac arrest, while detained at the for-profit civil immigration detention center. We witness the tragedy of immigration detention on a daily basis. This death powerfully demonstrates the need for ICE to end immigration detention and pursue alternatives to detention," said RMIAN Board President, Patricia Medige.
Support RMIAN on Colorado Gives Day!
Tuesday, December 5, is Colorado Gives Day. Be part of the statewide movement to give where you live and help us take advantage of the $1 million incentive fund by making a donation to RMIAN today!
Vera Institute of Justice Launches Safe Cities Network
New findings demonstrate that government-funded defense dramatically increases successful outcomes and boosts public trust and public safety.
RMIAN Attorneys to Present on Pro Bono Opportunities at Kilpatrick, Townsend & Stockton, LLP
RMIAN's Jessica Burnett and Natalie Petrucci will be presenting in Denver next Monday, November 13. The course, entitled - Ensuring Immigrants' Rights in Colorado: Opportunities for Meaningful Pro Bono Work with RMIAN - is an opportunity for attorneys to learn about pro bono opportunities with RMIAN.
RMIAN attorneys Jessica Burnett and Natalie Petrucci will be presenting in Denver next Monday, November 13, at Kilpatrick, Townsend & Stockton, LLP. The course, entitled - Ensuring Immigrants' Rights in Colorado: Opportunities for Meaningful Pro Bono Work with RMIAN - is an opportunity for attorneys to learn about pro bono opportunities with RMIAN.
If you would like to attend the course, further information, the schedule, and instructions on to RSVP can be found below.
Ensuring Immigrants’ Rights in Colorado: Opportunities for Meaningful Pro Bono Work with the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network (RMIAN)
November 13, 2017
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm (MST)
Kilpatrick Townsend & Stockton LLP
1400 Wewatta Street, Suite 600
Denver, CO. 80202
Please RSVP: To Rachael Villarreal via phone: 303.571.4000 or email: rvillarreal@kilpatricktownsend.com
Presented by:
Jessica Burnett, Esq.
Immigration Justice Campaign Pro Bono Coordinator
RMIAN’s Detention Program
Natalie Petrucci, Esq.
University of California President’s Public Service Law Fellow
RMIAN’s Children’s Program
Course Description: Individuals in immigration proceedings, even children and those in detention, are not entitled to court appointed counsel. Working alongside Volunteer Pro Bono Attorneys, RMIAN strives to end this inequity by providing free immigration-related legal services to individuals in immigration detention and to children throughout Colorado. Come learn about our work and the meaningful pro bono opportunities available to volunteer attorneys. No previous immigration law experience necessary!
2:00 PM – 2:05 PM Overview of RMIAN’s Services
2:05 PM – 2:25 PM Common Forms of Relief for Detention Program Clients
2:25 PM – 2:45 PM Common Forms of Relief for Children’s Program Clients
2:45 PM – 2:50 PM RMIAN Pro Bono Case Referral Process
2:50 PM – 3:00 PM Q&A
Total Instruction Time: 1 Hour
Method/Format of Presentation: Live, classroom format, instructor live in Denver, CO
RMIAN Staff Members to Present at Upcoming DU Civic Engagement Series
RMIAN's Lauren Duke and Megan Hope will join other local advocates in discussing immigration at the upcoming Civic Education for Civic Engagement Series, hosted by the University of Denver's Graduate School of Social Work.
I Accidentally Turned My Dad In to Immigration Services
Colorado woman and Yale senior, Viviana Andazola Marquez, tells the story of how her father, a long-term Colorado resident, was detained and placed in deportation proceedings.
*Photo Courtesy of Viviana Andazola Marquez and the New York Times
Webinar: Trauma-Informed Care for Attorneys Working with Victims of Crime
The Rocky Mountain Victim Law Center will provide a webinar on "Trauma-Informed Care for Attorneys Working with Victims of Crime" on Wednesday, November 15th.
Free Webinar: How to win the release of Clients arrested by ICE
The Center for Human Rights and Constitutional Law will facilitate this webinar for legal services providers and immigrants' advocates on Thursday, October 19th. Details here.
RMIAN Honored to Receive Ralph Carr Award from ACLU of Colorado
RMIAN Staff and Board members in attendance at the ACLU of Colorado Bill of Rights Dinner on September, 28th.
Free DACA Renewal Clinics Around Colorado
More than 4,000 Coloradans with DACA need to renew before the October 5th deadline. Find an upcoming renewal clinic near you.
Webinar: Trauma-Informed Care for Attorneys Working with Victims of Crime
The Rocky Mountain Victim Law Center will provide a webinar on "Trauma-Informed Care for Attorneys Working with Victims of Crime" on Wednesday, September 27th.
We Stand with Dreamers
RMIAN's Elizabeth Zambrana and other Equal Justice Works Fellows discuss their DACA work.
Thank You to Lawyers for Standing up for Justice!
Packed house for RMIAN-CBA Immigration Law Training today.
What Do I Need to Know About the End of DACA?
A community advisory and resource from the Immigrant Legal Resource Center. Photo by Joe Amon, The Denver Post
RMIAN Statement on the Future of DACA
Statements from RMIAN Staff and Board members on the future of DACA
We believe that justice for immigrants means justice for all.
September 1, 2017
Since the inception of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program in 2012, RMIAN has worked tirelessly to help eligible youth in Colorado apply for this important protection and open doors of opportunity. RMIAN has witnessed the amazing courage and hard work of DREAMers, and been inspired by their journeys of higher education, employment, and family unity. RMIAN stands in solidarity with all DACA recipients and their families, and is adamantly opposed to any termination or reduction of the program.
“To end DACA would be a gross injustice and betrayal to the thousands of young immigrants who came forward, trusting in the rule of law, in order to more fully participate in the country that they call home. DACA recipients embody the very best of the United States, and to deny them the opportunity to live free from the threat of deportation and to end their continued work authorization is a tragedy, and a detriment to our country as a whole,” said RMIAN’s Executive Director Mekela Goehring.
“For the President to end DACA in the name of the rule of law is the worst hypocrisy just days after he pardoned Joe Arpaio for a crime involving racial discrimination in law enforcement. For the President to end DACA in the name of immigration policy rejects all of the values — hard work, getting an education, and contributing to a better society for all Americans — that this country has always held dear,” said RMIAN Founding Board Member and UCLA Law Professor Hiroshi Motomura.
“We are devastated and outraged that the President plans to end DACA. By definition, people with DACA came to the United States as young children, have lived here for over ten years, have attended school here, and do not have criminal histories. They are children, students, lawyers, doctors, business owners, trusted employees, neighbors, friends, mothers and fathers. They are valued members of our community who will suddenly have their jobs and security taken away from them and who will be forced to live in fear of deportation by the government they trusted. We stand with all the DREAMers and call on Congress to provide them with meaningful protection,” said RMIAN’s Children’s Program Managing Attorney Ashley Harrington.
“Terminating DACA would have an immediate and devastating impact on the thousands of Colorado residents who have been approved for the program. Termination of the program would have wide-reaching, negative repercussions for the businesses that employ DACA recipients, the schools and universities that DACA recipients attend, and threaten the stability of the families who rely on the program. The uncertainty and anxiety plaguing my clients and young DREAMers across the country should serve as a moral imperative to our President and our legislators to take swift action to protect these young people. If they are indeed committed to the rule of law, the ball is squarely in their court to take the necessary action to protect them,” said RMIAN Equal Justice Works Emerson Fellow Attorney Elizabeth Zambrana.
RMIAN will continue to fight to advance the legal rights of our fellow Coloradans of immigrant backgrounds. We stand for inclusion, equality, and justice and will fight for due process and equal access to justice for all.
For additional information about RMIAN and ways you can help, please visit www.rmian.org or contact Executive Director Mekela Goehring at mgoehring@rmian.org or (720) 370-9102.
*photo includes RMIAN attorney Elizabeth Zambrana (right) and a client who received DACA through RMIAN
RMIAN Founding Board Member Hiroshi Motomura Takes Downs Myths on DACA
*Video content by the National Immigration Law Center
RMIAN to Co-Sponsor September CLE: Representing Immigrants in a New Era of Immigrant Enforcement
RMIAN will co-sponsor an upcoming CLE on Thursday, September 7, entitled: Representing Immigrants in a New Era of Immigration Enforcement. Event details here.
RMIAN will co-sponsor an upcoming CLE on Thursday, September 7, entitled: Representing Immigrants in a New Era of Immigration Enforcement. Event details here.
ACLU of Colorado to Honor RMIAN with Ralph Carr Award
The ACLU of Colorado will honor RMIAN with the Ralph Carr Award at its annual Bill of Rights Dinner on September 28, in Denver.
The ACLU of Colorado's Bill of Rights Dinner is an annual event where community members come together to celebrate victories, honor leaders, and inspire the community to continue its critical work of defending and preserving civil rights and civil liberties for all.
RMIAN is honored to be the recipient of this year's Ralph Carr Award. Other honorees include Harold Fields, who will receive the Carle Whitehead Memorial Award, and Susan Greene, who will receive the Larry Tajiri Media Award.
The dinner is scheduled to take place on Thursday, September 28, in Denver.
Immigrant Liberty Awards Inspire, Raise Funding for RMIAN
The Immigrant Liberty Awards were held on Friday, June 16, in Denver.
The 12th Annual Immigrant Liberty Awards, with the theme "Illuminating Justice," was held on Friday, June 16, in Denver.
More than 350 community members gathered to honor the outstanding achievements of immigrants, refugees, and those who advocate on behalf of the immigrant and refugee community. This year's event honored:
Yana Vishnitsky, who first came to Colorado with her family as a persecuted Jewish refugee from Soviet Russia in 1978. Yana's family was committed to building a better and freer life in the U.S. and received resettlement support from the Jewish Family Service of Colorado (JFS) upon her arrival. Vishnitsky became a case manager and translator with JFS, launching a successful career as a nonprofit leader. She retired from the agency as its President and CEO last year.
The Colorado African Organization Community Navigators, a unique group of individuals who are refugees themselves and help other new refugees bridge the gap between resettlement and self-sufficiency. These Community Navigators help others access the resources and support they need to integrate fully into Colorado and American society, including employment, housing, health care, and education.
Edgar Barraza, who made history as the first DREAMer admitted to the Colorado Bar. Edgar came to the U.S. at the age of 11 with his family and, although he could not speak English, he was motivated by his mother to take advantage of the educational opportunities available to him. Barraza, who worked his way as a top student first through Denver Public Schools, then the University of Denver's Josef Korbel School of International Studies, and finally the Sturm College of Law, is a model of academic success. He received Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, or DACA. Barraza was admitted to the Colorado Bar as its first DREAMer and is working for a private commercial litigation firm, Rollin Braswell Fisher, LLC, remembering to take time to give back to others through volunteering and mentoring programs.
In addition, Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP received the 9th Annual Pro Bono Service Award in recognition of the exemplary pro bono legal services the firm has provided to clients through RMIAN's Children's Program and Detention Program.
Community Activist Nadeen Ibrahim served as the Master of Ceremonies.
The inspirational event raised over $100,000 of funding for RMIAN's programs. RMIAN wishes to thank all of the honorees, attendees, and individuals who helped make the event such a success.
Edgar Barraza (left) accepts his Immigrant Liberty Award from Master of Ceremonies, Nadeen Ibrahim.
Free Training on "Ethical Considerations for Attorneys Representing Detained Immigrants"
Practicing Law Institute will be hosting a program on how to most effectively address certain ethical challenges that arise in the context of representing detained immigrants
Practicing Law Institute will be hosting a program on how to most effectively address certain ethical challenges that arise in the context of representing detained immigrants under the ABA Model Rules and the California Rules of Professional Conduct. The panelists will discuss how to ethically address consent and confidentiality, how to keep clients reasonably informed, how to address conflicts of interest that are more likely to arise in the context of detained cases, how to handle concerns about the validity of evidence or testimony, how to prepare clients to testify without eliciting unnecessary information, and how to talk to clients about which forms of relief to pursue and potential settlement offers.
More information on the training can be found here.