What’s Happening in the Immigration Clinic

Adult and Juvenile Immigration Outreach Projects and the VERA Institute of Justice

Juvenile Immigration Outreach Project

Starting in September 2006 the University of Houston Law Center's Clinical Programs launched the Juvenile Immigration Outreach Project. The Project strives to serve immigrant children between the ages 12 to 17 that are in federal custody in a juvenile detention shelter, Bokenkamp, in Corpus Christi, Texas. These children are held at Bokenkamp because the US government considers them "unaccompanied alien children" based on the belief that the children are present in the United States without proper immigration papers, and at the time of arrest, the child was not accompanied by a family member.

 Thanks to a contract with the VERA Institute of Justice and private contributions from the Blakely Advocacy's Arrival Awards Dinner law students sharpen their communication and analytical skills as they travel to Corpus Christi, Texas on a bi-weekly basis to assist the children at Bokenkamp. The law student driven Project seeks to link pro-bono attorneys with children attempting to convince a judge they have legal grounds to remain in the United States and to educate children on their rights and options so, if necessary, the children can assist with their representation in court. 

 During the first four months of the Project our law students met individually with over fifty girls and one hundred and twenty boys. With the help of community pro bono attorneys many of these children were able to find counsel to assist them maneuver their way through our legal system. If you are a law student interested in assisting with this Project or an attorney that may be interested in representing an immigrant child, please contact the attorney overseeing this Project, Anne Chandler AChandler@central.uh.edu.

 Adult Detention Outreach Project

In October 2006, The University of Houston Law Center's Clinical Legal Education Program was awarded a contract by the Vera Institute of Justice to implement a Legal Orientation Program for men and women who are or may be in removal proceedings and are detained at the Department of Homeland Security's Houston Processing Center near Bush Intercontinental Airport.

Among the various goals of this program, one aim is to inform and educate the detained men and women of their rights and potential relief from deportation, so that they can represent themselves in court, if necessary.  Also, the program endeavors to link pro bono attorneys with unrepresented men and women.  Since the implementation of this program, we have assisted an average of 175 detainees each month.  Law students who enroll in the Immigration Clinic will be able to participate in the Adult Legal Orientation Program and sharpen their communication and analytical skills through their participation in group presentations and individual intakes with the detained men and women.  If you are a law student interested in assisting with this Program or an attorney that may be interested in representing detained man or woman, please contact the attorney overseeing this program, Jenny Cordova Moya, jacordo3@central.uh.edu.  

To learn more about the VERA Institute of Justice, visit www.vera.org.