A Fighting Chance

When someone is detained, they have to request a hearing to be granted (or denied) the opportunity to pay a bond and return home to work, support their families, and contribute to their communities while they await their court date.  If they don't request bond, or if they can't pay the bond they are given, they can remain incarcerated for weeks or months (sometimes even years)

under terrible, inhumane conditions.

Detained people are not provided with a public defender.  While it's possible to request a bond hearing and petition for a bond without the help of a lawyer, it's extremely difficult and has much lower chances of success.

According to the Fair Fight Bond Fund, people who are bonded out of detention are five times more likely to secure a lawyer to fight their case, and people who have a lawyer are twice as likely to win their cases.  People released through bond who also have an attorney are TWENTY times more likely to win their case.  Winning their case means getting to stay and return home to their families, jobs, and communities.

As ACIJ has been in touch with the families of people detained by ICE in the past few months, far and away the most pressing need they've expressed has been for funds to help secure a lawyer.  Most lawyers charge $300-500 for just an initial consultation to review someone's case, let alone the actual legal work to follow. 

On average, a family might pay a total of $1500-15000 in legal fees for a lawyer to manage their immigration case start to finish, and that doesn't count bond, if they're eligible, which is typically $1500 at minimum, but can be much higher (at the discretion of the judge).

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