Bay Area immigrants are worried about going to court hearings. We asked a lawyer to weigh in.

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The Weekly Dispatch

Community-powered immigration news from the Bay Area.

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Welcome to El Tímpano’s Weekly Dispatch. I’m Erica Hellerstein, senior immigration, labor and economics reporter.

Since the election of Donald Trump, El Tímpano’s staff has been fielding a lot of questions from community members anxious about their upcoming immigration court hearings.

Some, like a woman we’ll call Paula, are concerned about going to court without legal representation. When she reached out, Paula was searching for low-cost immigration attorneys but kept hitting dead ends. One organization never returned her call. Another gave her a price quote that she worried was out of reach. “Given the situation with immigrants, I’m not sure if it will be worth it to pay a lot,” she told us, questioning whether investing in legal representation made sense in the current political climate.

She’s not alone. Others have expressed fears about Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), fueled by online rumors of officials arresting people at immigration court. These concerns aren’t entirely baseless—news reports from New Jersey to Florida have documented arrests at routine immigration check-ins, raising alarms about potential enforcement actions in courtrooms and immigration appointments. One community member, who we’ll call Gabriela, recently wrote in to ask: “If I show up for my annual check-in with ICE, could I be detained and deported then and there?”

While it’s understandable that these reports have people on edge, skipping immigration court can have serious, life-altering consequences—including fast-tracking the deportation process. Legal experts urge immigrants to secure representation if possible, and no matter what, to show up to court. For East Bay residents, a recent boost in county funding could make it easier to access free or low-cost legal representation.

The impact of missing a hearing

Immigration court hearings generally fall into two categories. The first step in the process is the master hearing, a brief proceeding where a judge reviews immigration charges and asks if the person intends to apply for relief, such as asylum. Later comes the final hearing, where the person can make their case against deportation by presenting testimony, evidence and legal arguments explaining why they should be granted a reprieve.

Missing either of these hearings can have serious consequences. A judge may issue an outstanding removal, known as an order of removal in absentia, allowing ICE to detain and deport the person at any time.

Once this process is in motion, it can be difficult to undo, explained Sara MacPherson, a supervising attorney at the Immigration Institute of the Bay Area. Someone who misses their hearing can file a motion to reopen their case within 180 days, but only if they provide evidence of “exceptional circumstances” like a serious illness or the death of a family member. Otherwise, they could face deportation at any time.

Despite concerns about ICE activity, MacPherson said she hasn’t heard of any recent arrests at immigration courts in the Bay Area. “I do think there are some reports of this happening elsewhere in the country, but I’m not aware of any reports locally,” she said. “The risk of detention when you show up for your hearing is low—it may not be zero, but it’s low.”

Legal resource boost headed to Alameda County

Instead of skipping court, experts stress the importance of securing legal representation. While many community members have struggled to find legal aid, reporting that organizations are overwhelmed or unresponsive, MacPherson pointed out that immigration court cases often stretch over months or even years due to backlogs, giving people time to prepare their case and seek counsel.

“The good news for many people is that they are going to have several years to prepare for an asylum case or a removal case,” MacPherson explained. That said, she acknowledged, “many people will have to pay private attorneys because there aren’t enough resources in the nonprofit world to give full representation to everyone.”

There are some local efforts to bridge this gap. Just this week, the Alameda County Board of Supervisors approved $1.3 million for the Public Defender’s office to provide legal support to unrepresented county residents facing detention and deportation. This funding is part of a broader $3.5 million county initiative aimed at expanding legal aid, emergency services and rapid response for immigrants in Alameda County.

Elsewhere in the East Bay, the Contra Costa Public Defender’s Office also provides immigration legal support to community members. For details on accessing these services, check out our resource guide below.

That’s all for now—thanks for reading and see you next week.

Ear to the Ground

El Tímpano’s text messaging (SMS) service reaches 5,700 Spanish-speaking immigrants across the Bay Area. Since Trump’s inauguration, we have received over 50 questions and concerns from our subscribers who are worried about potential changes to immigration policies that could impact their lives. Their concerns include protections for individuals with pending cases, laws related to birthright citizenship, ICE raids, family planning and more. Here are a few responses from our subscribers:

I have an appointment in May with immigration. Is it advisable for me to go?  People tell me not to go because they can deport me and I’m scared. I have my work permit.

Tengo una cita en mayo con inmigración. ¿Es recomendable que vaya? Me dicen que no vaya porque me pueden deportar y tengo miedo. Tengo mi permiso de trabajo.

–Pittsburg resident 

The truth is I’m very worried. I’m in the asylum process and I still don’t know the judge’s decision. And worse with the new president.

La verdad es que estoy muy preocupado. Estoy en proceso de asilo y aún no sé la decisión del juez. Y peor aún con el nuevo presidente.

– Oakland resident 

• Another local judge ruling complicates Trump’s immigration agenda: Meanwhile, on Monday, another federal judge in San Francisco threw sand in the gears of the administration’s efforts to terminate Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for more than a million Venezuelan and Haitian immigrants, pausing plans to end protections that were set to expire next week. In a ruling, the judge said the abrupt termination “threatens to inflict irreparable harm on hundreds of thousands of persons whose lives, families and livelihoods will be severely disrupted” and suggested that the plaintiffs will be successful in proving that the administration’s push to end TPS was “motivated by unconstitutional animus.” The judge gave the administration a week to appeal, so we’ll keep an eye on where this is headed.
  

• Despite the legal setbacks, deportation fears are influencing how California immigrants move through the world: In the state’s Central Valley, fear has embedded itself in immigrants’ daily lives and routines, CalMatters reports. A sweeping immigration raid in Kern County in January has left scores of community members on edge, as rumors of future raids circulate online, leaving some people afraid of picking up their kids from school or going grocery shopping. Attendance at some churches is down as well as the popular local flea market. There are even reports that some agricultural workers are not showing up to the fields. The administration’s stated goal is to encourage immigrants to “self-deport,” a campaign that has left some local immigrants feeling like “you’re on edge all the time,” one immigrant told the outlet.

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