Ousman Darboe
Ousman Darboe is a 28-year-old undocumented Black Muslim man who arrived in the United States from the Gambia as a six-year-old. Fordham Heights in The Bronx has been his home ever since. On July 31, 2017, ICE conducted an early morning raid on Mr. Darboe’s home and arrested him, taking him away from his home…
Vox: New York gave every detained immigrant a lawyer. It could serve as a national model.
“Sarah Deri Oshiro, who is now managing director of the immigration practice at the Bronx Defenders, had been working on deportation defense at Varick Street for five years prior to the implementation of the program. She saw a grim reality for detained, unrepresented immigrants, despite the city’s robust network of legal services organizations. “Given the…
Immigration Advocates Condemn “Disappearance” of Detained Clients After Sudden ICE Transfers, Refusal to Provide Any Information
June 7, 2021 Contacts: Alejandra Lopez, The Legal Aid Society, AILopez@legal-aid.org, 917-294-9348 Daniel Ball, Brooklyn Defender Services, dball@bds.org Ryan Karerat, The Bronx Defenders, rkarerat@bronxdefenders.org Yatziri Tovar, Make the Road New York, yatziri.tovar@maketheroadny.org, 917-771-2818 ***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*** Immigration Advocates Condemn “Disappearance” of Detained Clients After Sudden ICE Transfers, Refusal to Provide Any Information In Letter to…
NYIFUP Urges Enactment of the Dignity Not Detention Act in New York State
May 20, 2020 Contacts: Alejandra Lopez, The Legal Aid Society, AILopez@legal-aid.org, 917-294-9348 Daniel Ball Brooklyn Defender Services, dball@bds.org Ryan Karerat, The Bronx Defenders, rkarerat@bronxdefenders.org ***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*** NYIFUP Urges Enactment of the Dignity Not Detention Act in New York State Proposed Legislation Would End Immigration Detention Contracts with ICE in New York State (New York,…
NYIFUP Memorandum in Support of the Dignity Not Detention Act
Full memorandum here
The New York Immigrant Family Unity Project Demands Answers on Vaccination Plan for Detained Immigrants
March 11, 2021 Contacts: Alejandra Lopez, The Legal Aid Society, AILopez@legal-aid.org, 917-294-9348 Daniel Ball, Brooklyn Defender Services, dball@bds.org Ryan Karerat, The Bronx Defenders, rkarerat@bronxdefenders.org ***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*** The New York Immigrant Family Unity Project Demands Answers on Vaccination Plan for Detained Immigrants (New York, NY) – The Legal Aid Society, Brooklyn Defender Services, and The…
The Intercept: “Dying of Cold”: ICE Detainees Freezing In Southern Prisons
“Sophia Elena Gurulé, immigration policy counsel at the Bronx Defenders, said it’s typical for such concerns to be ignored. “As recent as two days ago we heard complaints from our clients, people detained at Bergen County Jail, that there are ongoing problems with the heat,” she said. “The Bronx Defenders and the providers that issued that statement have been…
DocumentedNY: Cuomo Approves COVID-19 Vaccine for Food Delivery and Restaurant Workers
“The Legal Aid Society, Brooklyn Defender Services and The Bronx Defenders are demanding Immigration and Customs Enforcement release immigrant detainees following a U.S. Department of Homeland Security memo put out on Jan. 20. The memo demands ICE prioritize national security, then border security, then public safety when embarking on enforcement actions, including when deciding which…
Immigration Advocates Demand Release of People in Detention in Light of New ICE Guidance
February 4, 2021 Contacts: Alejandra Lopez, The Legal Aid Society, AILopez@legal-aid.org, 917-294-9348 Daniel Ball, Brooklyn Defender Services, dball@bds.org Ryan Karerat, The Bronx Defenders, rkarerat@bronxdefenders.org ***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*** Immigration Advocates Demand Release of People in Detention in Light of New ICE Guidance In Letter to ICE Field Office, Defense Attorneys and Advocates Call for the Release…
Public Defenders, Advocates Sue New York, Claim Vaccine Denial Violates Constitutional Rights of Incarcerated People
Public Defenders, Advocates Sue New York, Claim Vaccine Denial Violates Constitutional Rights of Incarcerated People February 4, 2021 CONTACT Sam McCann, Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem (smccann@ndsny.org) Arianna Fishman, New York Civil Liberties Union (afishman@nyclu.org) Redmond Haskins, The Legal Aid Society (rhaskins@legal-aid.org) Ryan Karerat, The Bronx Defenders (rkarerat@bronxdefenders.org) Daniel Ball, Brooklyn Defender Services (Dball@bds.org) (NEW…
Letter to ICE Re: Release of people from ICE custody pursuant to January 20 memorandum
February 3, 2021 Via Email only – thomas.decker@ice.dhs.gov Thomas Decker Director, Enforcement and Removal Operations U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement 201 Varick Street New York, NY 10014 Re: Release of people from ICE custody pursuant to January 20 memorandum Dear Director Decker, We write on behalf of the three NYIFUP programs at Brooklyn Defender Services,…
NYIFUP Letter Re: Bergen County Jail’s Lack of Heat
January 29, 2021 Via Email only – thomas.r.decker@dhs.ice.gov Thomas Decker Director, Enforcement and Removal Operations U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement 201 Varick Street New York, NY 10014 Dear Director Decker, We have received several alarming reports over the last 36 hours from clients at Bergen County Jail that there is no heat in various…
NYIFUP Condemns ICE for Heat Outage at Bergen County Jail on Coldest Day in Tri-State in Two Years
January 29, 2020 Contacts: Alejandra Lopez, The Legal Aid Society, AILopez@legal-aid.org, 917-294-9348 Daniel Ball Brooklyn Defender Services, dball@bds.org Ryan Karerat, The Bronx Defenders, rkarerat@bronxdefenders.org ***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*** NYIFUP Condemns ICE for Heat Outage at Bergen County Jail on Coldest Day in Tri-State in Two Years (New York, NY) – The Legal Aid Society, Brooklyn Defender…
NYIFUP Statement on Egregious Treatment of Immigrants on Hunger Strike in ICE Detention
January 8, 2020 Contacts: Alejandra Lopez, The Legal Aid Society, AILopez@legal-aid.org, 917-294-9348 Daniel Ball Brooklyn Defender Services, dball@bds.org Ryan Karerat, The Bronx Defenders, rkarerat@bronxdefenders.org ***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*** NYIFUP Statement on Egregious Treatment of Immigrants on Hunger Strike in ICE Detention Attorneys Demand Transparency from Jail Officials and Release of All Immigrants in ICE Custody (New…
NYIFUP Statement on Detained Immigrants’ Hunger Strike and New COVID-19 Outbreak in Hudson County Jail
(New York, NY) – This week, Brooklyn Defender Services, The Bronx Defenders, and The Legal Aid Society – New York City’s defender organizations providing free legal representation to detained immigrants through the New York Immigrant Family Unity Project (NYIFUP) – received multiple reports from people served by the program of an ongoing hunger strike in…
NYIFUP Statement About Hudson County’s Contract with ICE
November 17, 2020 NYIFUP Statement About Hudson County’s Contract with ICE The New York Immigrant Family Unity Project (NYIFUP) provides free, high-quality representation to detained people facing deportation in New York City. Our clients are New Yorkers who are detained in county jails that include the Hudson County Jail in New Jersey. NYIFUP is run…
The Riverdale Press: Council funds help for immigrants
“The city council says it will earmark $28.4 million toward immigration services — funds that will help provide free legal services navigating the citizenship application process, among other services. The funding comes on the heels of the Trump administration’s attempts to raise citizenship application fees from $640 to $1,160 — an increase intended to go…
Blavity: Judge Orders Release Of 26-Year-Old Gambian Immigrant Detained At ICE Facility For 3 Years
“A federal judge ordered ICE officials at a jail in New Jersey on Monday to release Ousman Darboe, a 26-year-old undocumented immigrant from Gambia who has been detained for more than three years, according to his lawyers at The Bronx Defenders. Darboe, a Black Muslim, was pardoned by New York Governor Andrew Cuomo in February but has…
Gothamist: Pardoned By Cuomo But Detained By ICE, Bronx Immigrant Marks Three Years In ICE Detention
“In a series of court decisions since the pardon, neither immigration nor federal judges have agreed to his release — even on bond. “Black immigrants are treated differently in these court proceedings,” said Sophia Gurulé, his attorney from Bronx Defenders. “For some reason they don’t value the community ties that he has, they don’t value…
Patch: Reports Of AC Failure At Bergen County Jail As Heat Wave Hits NJ
“The Bergen County Sheriff’s Department reports that temperatures inside the Bergen County jail are currently between 70 and 73 degrees. A group of immigration attorneys say that’s a lie. As temperatures touch the mid-90s, the New York Immigrant Family Unity Project and their legal providers continue to call for the release of their clients held…
NJ.com: ICE detainees should be released because air conditioning is failing in N.J. jail, attorneys say
“A group of attorneys are demanding the release of detained immigrants from the Bergen County jail due to the reports of broken air conditioning systems over the weekend, as the state is in the middle of heat wave and a coronavirus pandemic. The New York Immigrant Family Unity Project sent a letter to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) after…
Attorneys for Detained Immigrants Demand Their Release from Bergen County Jail Amid Heat Wave and Reports of Broken Air Conditioning
July 27, 2020 CONTACTS: Alejandra Lopez, The Legal Aid Society, 917-294-9348, AILopez@legal-aid.org Ryan Karerat, The Bronx Defenders, 917-635-4326, rkarerat@bronxdefenders.org Dan Ball, Brooklyn Defender Services, 203-213-9303, dball@bds.org ***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*** (NEW YORK, NY) – The Legal Aid Society, Brooklyn Defender Services, and The Bronx Defenders – New York City’s defender organizations providing free legal representation to…
Bronx Defenders Statement on DACA Decision
***FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*** Bronx Defenders Statement on DACA Decision June 18, 2020 CONTACT Ryan Karerat, The Bronx Defenders (RKarerat@bronxdefenders.org) (NEW YORK, NY) – Sarah Deri Oshiro, Managing Director of the Immigration Practice at The Bronx Defenders, issued the following statement in response to the Supreme Court’s decision Thursday blocking the Trump Administration from ending the…
Gotham Gazette: As Courts Reopen, Threat of ICE Returns: State Lawmakers Must Protect Our Neighbors
“ICE has already used the courthouse to trap immigrants during the current crisis. On March 13, as President Trump declared a National Emergency, Mr. RC, a client of The Bronx Defenders, appeared in state court in Poughkeepsie. Despite the mounting pandemic and the deployment of state and federal resources to try to contain the virus…
Quartz: Why ICE’s coronavirus response is so dangerous
“These recent events make me think of people like Ousman Darboe, a longtime Bronx, New York resident, husband, and father, currently jailed at Bergen County Jail, whom ICE has kept locked up in civil immigration confinement since 2017. ICE claims he’s a public safety risk, even after governor Andrew Cuomo granted a pardon of his sole criminal conviction,…