The Government’s Doomed Pro Se Efforts Against Migrant Serving Nonprofit Law Firms
Experienced litigators will tell you that they hate going up against pro se litigants. Oh sure, it’s almost certain that a trained litigator will win. But she knows she will have to respond to uninformed, stupid, and even asinine arguments along the way. And that the judge will bend over backwards to vindicate the opponent’s constitutional right to represent himself. Judges will indulge, hopefully with the patience of Job, even the most patently ridiculous arguments and motions. It all makes for the expenditure of a lot more time and money. I’d rather go up against the best-trained and educated litigator any day.
That’s what I thought when I read the latest public assertions from Marjorie Taylor Green, newly installed as Chair of some sort of House DOGE Subcommittee, and newly confirmed DHS Secretary Kristi Noem. Green posted about her outrage when she learned that religious nonprofit posted a video explaining legal rights of people stopped by ICE agents. You can listen to the advice of an attorney from Catholic Charities Refugee & Immigration Services below, but the advice basically amounts to you have the right to remain silent and you don’t have to answer questions:
Migrants have a right to counsel, though the government need not pay for it. So it can hardly be illegal — or justification for a subpoena — that a charity supports a constitutional right while exercising its own constitutional right to freedom of religion. But MTG says she’s gonna haul Barb Graham’s ass before the Committee to explain why she and CCRIS are dispensing free legal advice. It’s laughable except that Ms. Graham has probably experienced a good deal of hate as result of MJT’s post.
Meanwhile, Kristi Noem, all decked out in Kevlar and hair extensions, announced that DHS is cutting off all grants to Catholic Charities sheltering migrants (and other cold and hungry folk) along the southern border. She said on Fox News that the Catholic groups claim to be religious, but “they ain’t out there telling people about Jesus.” And because of that, they should have their funding cut. I am not making any of this up.
Last Friday, a group of nine nonprofits, represented by powerhouse Gibson Dunn filed suit to declare the whole effort unconstitutional, along with a motion for TRO backed by a 140 page memorandum of law. You can read the press release below the fold.
I sure hope the government doesn’t proceed pro se in defense.
darryll k. jones
Washington, DC – Today, the Amica Center for Immigrant Rights and other partner organizations, represented by Gibson Dunn, announced the filing of a federal lawsuit against the government for shutting down critical legal orientation programs for immigrants, including people detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). The lawsuit, filed against the Department of Justice (DOJ), Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, and other defendants, challenges the government’s recently imposed stop-work order for legal access programs that have obliterated access to the most basic information for unrepresented noncitizens about their rights and obligations throughout removal proceedings.
Organizational plaintiffs in the suit include American Gateways, Amica Center for Immigrant Rights, Estrella del Paso, Florence Immigrant & Refugee Rights Project, Immigration Services & Legal Advocacy, National Immigrant Justice Center, Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center, and Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network.
The DOJ’s decision to shut down these national legal access programs poses a significant threat to the rights of immigrant children, adults, and families, especially those detained by the government. These legal orientation programs are crucial, as they provide immigrants—the vast majority of whom are unrepresented, and many of whom are confused and traumatized, do not speak English, and lack any legal education—with essential information about their rights throughout the immigration process and deportation proceedings. Such programs have bipartisan support, and the oldest has been in place for over two decades.
The shutdown is a direct result of the January 20, 2025, Executive Order, “Protecting the American People from Invasion,” which has paved the way for mass deportations. Without access to legal information and support, noncitizens face severe obstacles in navigating their immigration proceedings.
The lawsuit aims to restore immediate access to these essential programs, ensuring that people trapped in ICE detention receive the legal orientation and support that is their legal right.
darryll k. jones