Three-year-old child forced to serve as her own attorney in Tucson immigration court
More than a dozen undocumented minors were forced to serve as their own attorneys in front of an immigration judge as the Trump administration ramps up removal proceedings.
Three-year-old Lucy approached the lawyer’s table wearing a multi-colored and floral dress and bright red pants.
The child, barely old enough to talk, was one of 25 immigrant children forced to fight removal efforts by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) at the Pima County immigration courthouse in Tucson on Nov. 24.
Unable to reach the chair on her own, Lucy was lifted into the seat by Ana Islas, a lawyer with the
Florence Immigrant and Refugee Rights Project (FIRRP), a nonprofit providing legal services to immigrants.
Islas pulled out a brown teddy bear to ease the toddler’s nerves while she faced Judge Irene C. Feldman. Islas is not formally representing Lucy, but provided Feldman with information regarding Lucy’s case due to her age and inability to understand immigration proceedings.
Lucy and the other unaccompanied minors who are fighting removal orders must appear in front of the judge, many without the help of a lawyer, to defend themselves from accusations of illegal entry into the US.
At Lucy’s first hearing in
August, an attorney with FIRRP explained that despite a desire to assist the child, the nonprofit lost most of their federal funding in March after the Trump administration terminated contracts.
…
After her hearing ended, Lucy cuddled her teddy bear as she walked back from the lawyer’s table and took a seat.