Latest news with #Gelernt
17-05-2025
- Politics
Families separated by Trump's 'zero-tolerance' policy at risk due to lapse in legal services, ACLU argues
Hundreds of parents and children separated under the "zero-tolerance" border policy during President Donald Trump's first term -- who were later reunited and protected by a 2023 settlement -- are at risk of being separated again due to a lapse in legal services, lawyers argue. Under the 2023 court-approved settlement agreement, reached as a result of a class-action lawsuit filed in 2018, the federal government agreed to provide certain services to an estimated 5,000 people -- families and children separated under the 2017-2018 "zero tolerance" policy -- including behavioral health services and immigration legal services. However, the ACLU says a recent decision made by the Trump administration to gut and then abruptly terminate a contract with the Acacia Center for Justice violates that agreement, leaving hundreds of migrants in legal limbo. The nonprofit organization is the main contractor that oversees services provided to separated families, such as helping them apply for parole and other benefits they're "mandated" to receive at the government's expense, the American Civil Liberties Union argues. An estimated 414 migrants who are eligible for benefits are at risk of deportation because their legal status is set to expire by the end of the month if they don't receive the help Acacia was offering them, ACLU attorney Lee Gelernt argued during a federal court hearing Friday in the Southern District of California. "If they don't have parole, they're subject to arrest, deportation and re-separation," Gelernt said during the hearing. The Trump administration argues that it wants to provide those services on its own -- through the Executive Office for Immigration Review's Helpdesk, "or a separate similar program" and that it is not prohibited by the 2023 agreement from doing so. An attorney representing the Trump administration said they had already emailed more than 52,000 individuals on their list of pro bono providers to see if they could represent some of the people covered under the settlement. As of May 15, however, only 71 had "expressed interest," so far, according to documents submitted in court. "On the record before the court now there's not enough to show a breach, and I can understand why the court is directing the parties to provide more information," the government attorney said. "But again, right now, it is speculation and as the government noted in its response to the plaintiff's motion, they have not provided one class member who has been deprived of services required under the settlement. So again, I think we're getting way ahead by speculating on things that may or may not happen." Gelernt countered by saying even if those 71 providers eventually offer to help, it's not enough to deal with the thousands of cases that are now in limbo because of Acacia's absence. "We spent two years working through this and the government understood that the only way to do this and provide people real, meaningful help was this structure," Gelernt said, referring to the years of negotiation leading to the 2023 settlement. "This can't be a sort of sideshow for the government. They'll get to it when they get to it. Acacia woke up every morning with all its subcontractors, and all day long, worked on this as a full-time matter with their subcontractors." Judge Dana Makoto Sabraw set another hearing for May 30 and asked both sides to provide additional information about what services the government could reasonably provide. "If Mr. Gelernt is correct in his assessment, in his understanding of the full landscape of these class members, the services they need, the services that were provided by Acacia, in his view, that there's simply no way in the real world that 71 or a few more volunteer pro bono attorneys can pick up this caseload that Acacia was addressing, that, too, could lead to a finding of breach of the settlement agreement. But I need additional evidence in order to make those determinations," the judge said. Gelernt said that if the government now seeks to provide these services, affected class members may not trust them enough to reach out. "I don't know whether people will reach out to the government, because it's the same government, obviously, that separated them," he said.
Yahoo
20-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Inside the ACLU's race to stop Venezuelans' deportation to Salvadoran prison
The American Civil Liberties Union's lead attorney described to ABC News the rapid pace of legal action that led to the extraordinary ruling from the Supreme Court early Saturday morning that blocks the Trump administration from deporting Venezuelans to a prison in El Salvador. Lee Gelernt said the ACLU began to learn Thursday night that the migrants could be moved from a detention center in Texas as early as that night, so they filed in the middle of the night. 'We just kept pushing and ended up filing in multiple courts, and ultimately the Supreme Court, at 1 a.m. on Friday night, early Saturday morning, stopped the removals,' Gelernt said in an interview with ABC News. 'But it was touch and go for a long time.' MORE: Van Hollen: 'I am not defending the man, I am defending the rights of this man to due process' The ACLU says migrants held in the Texas detention center received a notice and were told they'd be removed in 12 to 24 hours. 'Under the Alien Enemies Act, you have been determined to be an alien enemy subject to apprehension, restraint and removal from the United States,' the notice reads, which was filed in court by the ACLU. The document is written in English and says migrants can make a phone call, although it does say the notice will be read to the individual in a language they understand. It did not include any method to contest the order. 'The government is providing only 12 to 24 hours with a notice that was served in English that does not explain that people have the right to contest, nor tell them how to do it or how much time they have to do it,' Gelernt said. 'There is no argument whatsoever that these notice procedures comply with the Supreme Court's directive.' The girlfriend of one of the migrants held in the detention center told ABC News he received a document that appeared to be the same one that the ACLU filed in court. She says he told her it was hard to understand. She added that he said he and a group of detainees were taken to an airport near the facility on Friday and they were about to be deported. Then, he told her, once they arrived, an officer informed the group they were being sent back to the center and would not board the plane. Gelernt said the stakes couldn't be any higher and that Kilmar Abrego Garcia -- the Salvadoran native living Maryland who was deported in March to a mega-prison in his home country -- isn't the only person who was 'erroneously' sent to the notorious CECOT mega-prison in El Salvador. 'They're unilaterally claiming that people are members of a gang, but not giving them the opportunity to go into court and show they're not. And we know that multiple, multiple people have been erroneously tagged as members of this gang, but once they get to the El Salvadoran prison, they may never get out for the rest of their life,' Gelernt said. 'It's critical that we give them hearings before we take such an extraordinary action," he added. Inside the ACLU's race to stop Venezuelans' deportation to Salvadoran prison originally appeared on
Yahoo
20-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Inside the ACLU's race to stop Venezuelans' deportation to Salvadoran prison
The American Civil Liberties Union's lead attorney described to ABC News the rapid pace of legal action that led to the extraordinary ruling from the Supreme Court early Saturday morning that blocks the Trump administration from deporting Venezuelans to a prison in El Salvador. Lee Gelernt said the ACLU began to learn Thursday night that the migrants could be moved from a detention center in Texas as early as that night, so they filed in the middle of the night. 'We just kept pushing and ended up filing in multiple courts, and ultimately the Supreme Court, at 1 a.m. on Friday night, early Saturday morning, stopped the removals,' Gelernt said in an interview with ABC News. 'But it was touch and go for a long time.' MORE: Van Hollen: 'I am not defending the man, I am defending the rights of this man to due process' The ACLU says migrants held in the Texas detention center received a notice and were told they'd be removed in 12 to 24 hours. 'Under the Alien Enemies Act, you have been determined to be an alien enemy subject to apprehension, restraint and removal from the United States,' the notice reads, which was filed in court by the ACLU. The document is written in English and says migrants can make a phone call, although it does say the notice will be read to the individual in a language they understand. It did not include any method to contest the order. 'The government is providing only 12 to 24 hours with a notice that was served in English that does not explain that people have the right to contest, nor tell them how to do it or how much time they have to do it,' Gelernt said. 'There is no argument whatsoever that these notice procedures comply with the Supreme Court's directive.' The girlfriend of one of the migrants held in the detention center told ABC News he received a document that appeared to be the same one that the ACLU filed in court. She says he told her it was hard to understand. She added that he said he and a group of detainees were taken to an airport near the facility on Friday and they were about to be deported. Then, he told her, once they arrived, an officer informed the group they were being sent back to the center and would not board the plane. Gelernt said the stakes couldn't be any higher and that Kilmar Abrego Garcia -- the Salvadoran native living Maryland who was deported in March to a mega-prison in his home country -- isn't the only person who was 'erroneously' sent to the notorious CECOT mega-prison in El Salvador. 'They're unilaterally claiming that people are members of a gang, but not giving them the opportunity to go into court and show they're not. And we know that multiple, multiple people have been erroneously tagged as members of this gang, but once they get to the El Salvadoran prison, they may never get out for the rest of their life,' Gelernt said. 'It's critical that we give them hearings before we take such an extraordinary action," he added. Inside the ACLU's race to stop Venezuelans' deportation to Salvadoran prison originally appeared on
Fox News
07-04-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
ACLU lawyer warns under Trump 'anybody can be picked up' and deported with no judicial oversight
An American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) attorney warned that "anybody can be picked up" if President Donald Trump uses the Alien Enemies Act with no judicial oversight. Lee Gelernt spoke on CBS' "60 Minutes" on Sunday about reports of illegal Venezuelan migrants being deported to an El Salvador prison despite allegedly having no gang ties or criminal record. This followed the Trump administration invoking the 1798 Alien Enemies Act to immediately deport violent illegal immigrants believed to be members of gangs like Tren de Aragua. Gelernt, who is part of the ACLU's legal challenge against the Trump administration, insisted the president does not have the right to send someone who has been deported to a prison in a different country. "Every administration back to 1798 has understood this is wartime authority to be used when the United States is at war with a foreign government," Gelernt said. "The administration is saying, 'Not only are we gonna use it against a criminal organization, but you, the courts, have no role. You cannot tell us that we're violating the law or stop us.'" "60 Minutes" correspondent Cecilia Vega reported on other legal concerns arising from concerns that illegal immigrants without gang ties are being sent to this prison without due process. Gelernt warned "anything is possible" if the Trump administration continues to invoke the Alien Enemies Act this way. "There are a lot of people who might hear what you're saying and say, these people don't have papers. They should be deported. To that, you say what?" Vega asked. "If they are here illegally and don't have a right to stay, they can be deported back to their home country. If they've committed crimes, they can be prosecuted and perhaps spend many, many years in a U.S. prison," Gelernt said. "It's not a matter of, 'Can these individuals be punished?' It's a matter of how the government is gonna go about doing it. Once we start using wartime authority with no oversight, anything is possible. Anybody can be picked up." Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for a comment but did not immediately receive a response. The Trump administration acknowledged last week that it had mistakenly deported Salvadoran Kilmar Abrego Garcia to the El Salvador prison despite a federal judge ruling five years ago that he could not be deported over concerns he would become a victim of local gangs. His request for asylum was denied, but he was given protection from deportation and ICE didn't appeal the decision. The Trump administration said Garcia's removal was an "administrative error" but defended the decision, alleging that Garcia has ties to MS-13.
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Venezuelan migrant recently deported to El Salvador had final order of removal
One of the Venezuelan migrants who is believed to be among the latest group sent to El Salvador on Sunday night was in Guantanamo Bay and had a final order of removal, according to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). Maiker Espinoza Escalona was the lead plaintiff in one of the Guantanamo cases brought by the ACLU against the Department of Homeland Security filed last month. His partner is currently detained in a detention center in Texas and his two-year-old daughter is in HHS custody, according to the ACLU. "The government opposed our request for TRO on the ground that he was not in imminent danger of being sent from the U.S. to Guantanamo, but told the Court they would alert it within 2 business days if he or other Plaintiffs were transferred to Guantanamo," Lee Gelernt, an attorney for the ACLU told ABC News. "The government has apparently chosen to use a loophole and transfer him on a Friday night, thereby avoiding notice to the Court at this point. He has apparently now been transferred to the notorious Salvadoran prison." MORE: Documents appear to show how Trump admin identifies Venezuelan gang members: ACLU Gelernt said he has serious concerns about the government's "sudden allegations" against Escalona. "He and others being sent to the Salvadoran prison must be given due process to test the government's assertions," Gelernt added. A White House official tells ABC News that the 17 alleged gang members who were deported to El Salvador last night were not deported under the Alien Enemies Act but under different authorities, including under Title 8 authorities. It's not clear whether the individuals including Escalona who were deported would have been protected by the Temporary Restraining Order issued by a federal judge on Friday that blocked the deportation of migrants to countries other than their own without giving them a chance to argue their removal in immigration court. In a sworn declaration filed in early March before he was allegedly sent to Guantanamo, Escalona said he had been in immigration detention since May 22, 2024, in El Paso, Texas. He entered the country on May 14 and requested asylum, according to his declaration. "I believe that I am at risk of being transferred because I have a final order of deportation and am from Venezuela," Escalona said in the sworn declaration. "I also believe that I am going to be transferred to Guantanamo because of my tattoos, even though they have nothing to do with gangs. I have twenty tattoos." MORE: El Salvador prison holding alleged Venezuelan gang members has been criticized for alleged abuses Escalona went on to list his tattoos he has that include a cross, a crown, the ghost icon for the social media app Snapchat, his niece's name and the word "Faith" in Spanish. "I do not want to be transferred to or detained at Guantanamo," Escalona said in the declaration files in early March. I am afraid of what will happen to me when I get there. "I want access to an attorney to help me get out of detention and figure out what options I have in my immigration case." According to Escalona's sworn declaration and the ACLU, his partner is currently detained in El Paso and his two-year-old daughter is under the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement. "If I am transferred to Guantanamo, I will be separated from my family," Escalona said. Venezuelan migrant recently deported to El Salvador had final order of removal originally appeared on
