Detention Program
The Department of Homeland Security holds over 32,000 noncitizens in detention on any given day. Asylum seekers, survivors of torture, long-term permanent residents, families and children are routinely detained for months during their immigration proceedings. Charged with only a civil violation, they are not afforded a public defender in these high stakes proceedings.
Since 1993, with initial funding from the Vermont Bar Foundation, Vermont Refugee Assistance has provided legal assistance to those immigrants being held in the custody of the Department of Homeland Security in Vermont. VRA staff conducts weekly legal orientation presentations in Franklin County jail in St. Albans where the male immigrants are held and, on a needs basis, to the Northwest State Correctional Facility in Swanton where the female immigrants are held. Since 2006, VRA has also conducted weekly presentations for immigrants held in Clinton County jail in Plattsburgh, N.Y. These jails serve as relative short term facilities and most of the detainees are transferred to other prisons for their immigration hearings.
Staff works cooperatively with the detainees to determine their eligibility for relief and the means to obtain it. An emphasis is placed on preparation for the bond hearing so that the immigrant can seek the legal support they need once released. In the case of indigent asylum seekers and other vulnerable populations, VRA prepares a thorough intake which is then passed to legal service organizations working in the area where the detainee is bound.
