WHEN G.J.C.P., as she is known in court documents, was 13, gang members in her native El Salvador began tormenting her. The men offered her drugs, nagged her to get involved with them romantically and urged her to join their gang. G.J.C.P. refused, though the men had previously murdered a friend of hers for a similar offence. Fearful for her life and hoping to begin anew, she fled to America. Before she could get far, she was scooped up by border patrol agents in Hidalgo, Texas.
Like many undocumented, unaccompanied migrant children, G.J.C.P. has no lawyer to represent her in her deportation proceedings. By law, migrants facing removal are assured the right to an attorney. They do not, however, have the right to a free one—only defendants in criminal cases do. If they can afford the $2,000-$10,000 it costs to process most deportation cases, unaccompanied migrant children are welcome to appear in court with a lawyer. If not, they are expected to seek help from non-profit organisations, which are stretched, or to represent themselves against government prosecutors. In the 91,104 deportation cases involving unaccompanied migrant children...Continue reading
Source: United States http://ift.tt/21Hcb1I
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