Skip to content  Progress for Disabled Immigration Detainees
Last year, I covered the Deportation by Default report issued by
Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union. The
report highlighted significant problems in the US immigration
system with regards to mentally ill, developmentally disabled,
and intellectually disabled detainees. The study found that up
to 15% of immigration detainees had disabilities that impaired
their understanding of the proceedings against them, yet were
often in a position where they were forced to represent
themselves in immigration court.  Because immigration is treated
as a civil matter, detainees do not have a right to court-
appointed attorneys. They can pursue counsel for assistance in
court, but the court doesn’t need to provide it, or any other
assistance. They also, of course, need to pay for that counsel
if they want to secure attorneys to assist them with immigration
proceedings, and a good immigration lawyer can be quite
expensive. For disabled detainees