The Antelope Valley Times

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L.A. County affirms $1 million contribution to immigrant defense fund

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LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted Tuesday to contribute $1 million to a legal aid fund for people at risk of deportation and confirmed that anyone convicted of a violent felony will not be eligible to benefit from the fund.

The eligibility requirements for the county’s share of the L.A. Justice Fund — specifically the prohibition of convicted felons — drew protests from immigration advocates in April and forced the board to cancel a planned vote on the matter.

Civil rights advocates opposed to the exclusion said it amounted to unequal representation and ignored the fact that immigrants often “plead up” to more serious crimes based on legal advice that the crimes are “immigration- safe.”

Though the board and other contributors to the L.A. Justice Fund have cited the threat of new immigration policies of President Donald Trump, protesters accused county officials of playing into Trump’s framework of “good” and “bad” immigrants.

The board’s vote Tuesday focused on finalizing an agreement with the California Community Foundation to act as the county’s intermediary in granting aid. That agreement included an exhibit spelling out the eligibility criteria.

In addition to prohibiting those with a felony conviction and reserving aid for low-income immigrants, the county will prioritize help for:

— individuals with community ties to Los Angeles County, such as family members who are U.S. citizens;

— heads of households with one or more dependent family members;

— unaccompanied children and young adults who arrived as children;

— veterans;

— individuals with protection-based claims, such as refugees seeking asylum; and

— victims of crime, domestic violence and human trafficking.

Supervisor Hilda Solis said an estimated 7,000 county residents face deportation proceedings without a lawyer every year.

“The legal system is often-times tricky and can be difficult to navigate. On top of that, if you are an immigrant facing deportation, you are likely to speak a different language, be unfamiliar with complicated legal processes and be unable to afford a lawyer to represent you,” Solis said. “Today, the board took a significant step to create a safety net for immigrants, one that is pro-family, pro-economic growth and stability, and pro- civil and human rights.”

The Boston Immigrant Justice Initiative found that it costs about $5,000 in legal fees on average to contest a civil deportation case. The same group said that 98 percent of individuals without legal representation in such cases were deported between 2007-12.

Niels Frenzen, director of USC’s Gould School of Law Immigration Clinic, said the county’s money would free up other funds for immigrants with prior convictions.

“When there are limited funds, it’s not always possible to provide for the representation of everyone facing removal proceedings,” Frenzen said. “However, the county’s contribution to the L.A. Justice Fund provides significant new funding for immigrants under the threat of deportation who do not have felony records, which in turn frees providers to use non-L.A. Justice Fund funds to represent other immigrants, including those with criminal histories.”

The L.A. Justice Fund is aiming to raise $10 million. The county intends to contribute an additional $2 million in fiscal year 2018-19 and the city of Los Angeles has tentatively committed $2 million, an amount approved by a council committee Monday.

The city’s criteria also exclude anyone convicted of or appealing a conviction for a violent felony, however, some council members asked for clarification on that point before a vote by the full council.

Private entities are expected to contribute the remainder of the $10 million and can set their own rules for eligibility.

The board’s vote was 4-1, with Supervisor Kathryn Barger dissenting.

“Our federal immigration system is broken,” Barger said. “It is the federal government’s responsibility to support states and counties in their efforts to address the costs of illegal immigration. … County taxpayers should not be forced to bear the cost to provide free legal representation for those facing deportation.”

Previous related stories:

County approves $3 million in contributions for legal aid fund

County to seek legal aid for immigrants facing deportation

L.A. County officials push back against threats of deportation

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30 comments for "L.A. County affirms $1 million contribution to immigrant defense fund"

  1. IF ANYBODY DOES NOT LIKE HOW OUR ELECTED OFFICIALS RULE THEN YOU SHOULD LEAVE THE COUNTY AND GO LIVE TO TEXAS SICK AND TIRED OF HEARING PEOPLE CRYING AND SPEWING HATRED.

  2. As of today a decision handed down by the Supreme Court, this action is unconstitutional. Illegals have absolutely no rights to anything more than a bus ride back to from where they came. They may not be provided rights of any kind that would be afforded to American Citizens

    • Since there was nothing of the kind, or even related to the issue, in any decision released by the court today I assume you are just making up whatever sounds good to you…or parroting stuff that someone else made up. Which is it?

  3. That’s OUR ”TAXPAYER MONEY” paying to protect people who broke our laws! DEPORT them!! We cannot continue to break ”FEDERAL LAWS” & think it’s OK… All the L.A. County Board of Supervisors are LIBERALS, except Barger… We need to spend that money on more important issues…like ”VETERANS”!

    • Or the even more important issue of improving education. Maybe teach idiots the proper use of quotation marks and capitalization.

      For the record, the county isn’t breaking any federal laws.

  4. “Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors VOTED Tuesday to contribute $1 million to a legal aid fund for people at risk of deportation.”

    Tax Payers money!!!
    Voted? Why couldn’t I vote?

    The “Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors” has got to GO!

  5. Don’t support Deport tired of my taxes being spent on illegals get the hell out

  6. I would gladly appreciate my tax dollars being used to get these p.o.s. immigrants out of my neighborhood so they can trash their own country instead. It really pisses me off to see shopping carts and dirty matresses around my neighborhood. These p.o.s.’s don’t care because he’ll, they don’t want to work for money and they’re getting some form of government aid. And those that are sheltering them are getting funded somehow. If it actually cost them to earn a living they would not be so trashy. Therefore I hope they get out here. Hard working smart ones that don’t impose there dirty scumbag ways on other people are always welcomed here.

    • LOL…so, how exactly have you proven to yourself that the shopping carts and mattresses belong to illegal immigrants? Have you ever actually spoken to anyone with a shopping cart or a dirty mattress?

      • I’m sorry came but they are the pigs of the country they breathe like cockroaches they take advantage of our system they destroy our parts beaches mountains apartments/houses they are nothing but filthy pigs they need to go back to Mexico and they want to live like pigs like they’re used to

        • So, in other words you have no evidence that these shopping carts and mattresses have anything to do with illegal aliens, but you are willing to just run with your racist theory as if it were a fact. Good to know. Hope you die sooner rather than later so humanity can move forward without you holding us back.

          • Where do you think I live, since you think I’m not “around here”?

            So you base this on what you see…

            I guess you see people pushing these shopping carts wearing their illegal alien uniforms? Or are they leaving signs on these “dirty mattresses” that say “if found return to illegal alien headquarters”? Maybe you’re out patrolling the streets and checking their IDs? Nahhhh, scratch that last one since it would require manning up and talking to another human being. Face it you bigot, you just assume that everything bad can be written off to “illegals” because it makes you feel better about being a bigot when you “have a good reason.”

        • Sounds like u know everything u must be one of them. You should be tired of yourself and go to hell

      • Yes I have after they knocked on my bedroom window for the most stupidest reason and I told them to get the hell off my front yard. And no it don’t belong to them the shopping carts belong to either target or Walmart based on the colors and the matresses came out of a dirty dumpster based on how they look.

        • Oh yeah and another time when one of em tried to assault me on my own front yard. Key word “tried”. I know he was illegal because he got deported later down the road. I’m not the only one dealing with nonsense like this. So you should take time to to smell the fresh air instead of what’s in your toilet as you’re sitting on it typing and being a dooosh.

          • Assaulted in your front yard? Let me guess, you were being a jerk and some passerby didn’t like it. That seems likely enough. Hot tip: when crappy things happen to the same person over and over and over and over it isn’t just a coincidence.

          • You are right. It isn’t a coincidence. It’s a dirty habit that these people have of coming and going through my street leaving trash behind for me to clean around my house. Trying to enter my property or even my house uder the ASSumption that my home is abandoned like it used to be before I purchased it. I played the nice guy being passive about it. But after seeing this area progress with more graffiti and dump spots surrounded by people that barely know english(or act like they dont), excuse me for being a $#&@ jerk about it. And like I said, I ain’t the only one that feels this way. And I wouldn’t go up to one and ask for their i.d. because I’m not a cop or fed. But I’ll sure do something about it on my property surroundings.