Staff member says legal services ensure 'day in court' for unaccompanied children and adults swept up in ICE raids

A staff member said the legal services program aims to ensure that people involved in immigration-related proceedings "have their day in court," including children who are appearing in hearings without a guardian and adults detained in immigration enforcement actions.

"What we're trying to do in these legal services is ensure that people have their day in court," the staff member said, adding that the work covers both adults and children. "We're seeing children arrive to courts virtually unaccompanied." The speaker also said the program has seen "adults who've been swept up in some these ICE raids who may or may not be undocumented."

The staff member emphasized the constitutional basis for the services: "They have due process constitutional rights. Regardless of what you think about whether it's a good idea or bad idea, we uphold the constitution," the speaker said, adding that legal aid is meant "to uphold those rights both for adults and kids." The speaker explicitly referenced the U.S. Constitution as the governing legal standard for due process rights.

Parts of a remark addressing the governor and programs or funding were unclear in the transcript; the speaker appeared to say they were "not advocating for what happens overall" but did not clearly state whether that referred to policy positions, specific funding requests, or another matter. The transcript does not record any vote, formal motion, or a detailed description of next steps related to the program.

The staff member did not specify funding sources, the legal-aid program’s organizational affiliation, or a timeline for outreach; those details were not stated in the recorded remarks.

No formal action or decision was recorded in the transcript excerpt.