Clinic directors Niels Frenzen and Jean Reisz lead law students through changing immigration landscape
Since its founding in 2001, the USC Immigration Clinic at the USC Gould School of Law has brought together law students, faculty and staff to provide pro bono legal representation to some of the most vulnerable members of the immigrant community. Under the direction of Professors Niels Frenzen and Jean Reisz, the clinic has served nearly 1,000 clients from dozens of countries, representing individuals fighting for asylum, relief under the Violence Against Women Act and other applications for relief from removal. Since January, however, immigration enforcement actions and administrative orders have brought increased awareness to the efforts of the clinic’s faculty, staff and student workers.
“We are proud to be doing the work that aligns with USC Gould’s mission statement of educating students who will carry forward the tradition of justice, excellence and impact,” says Reisz, clinic co-director and clinical associate professor of law.
Keeping up with executive orders
After the November election, the Trump Administration’s plans for harsher immigration enforcement and executive orders affecting student visas sowed fear and uncertainty in USC’s international student population, as well as in students, staff and faculty who are immigrants or have loved ones who are immigrants. As a result, the clinic saw an increase in questions, Frenzen told the Los Angeles Times in December. The clinic has provided emergency legal consultations for international students who have had their immigration statuses change suddenly as a result of the executive orders, as well as for USC students, faculty and staff who have immigration questions and concerns based on their or their loved ones’ immigration statuses. Since the first Trump Administration, the clinic also has staffed an emergency arrest hotline for USC students, staff and faculty who are detained by immigration officials or Border Patrol.
“The most important thing for everyone to do is to educate yourself on your rights,” says Frenzen, Sidney M. and Audrey M. Irmas Endowed Clinical Professor of Law and director of the USC Immigration Clinic. “As the federal authorities continue to enforce further actions against immigrants, staying informed on the latest government actions and seeking advice from qualified legal service providers is recommended.”
Legal victories in immigration court
Amid the intensified immigration enforcement, the clinic has continued to respond to the needs of its clients, community and students: filing petitions, submitting applications and conducting rights trainings throughout the year. The clinic recently celebrated a victory, keeping a client who had been tortured in his home country from deportation, Reisz recounts.
“Our client was unlawfully arrested in Los Angeles while attending an ICE ‘check-in,’ a condition of his immigration bond,” she says. The man, who had been out on bond for over two years, had recently been granted protection under the Convention Against Torture by an immigration judge after it was determined that he had been tortured in his home country and was likely to face torture again.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) held the man incommunicado for four days as he was transported across several states, ultimately landing in Texas, she says. On Father’s Day, he was allowed a three-minute phone call to his wife, during which he believed he was about to be deported and told her to say goodbye to their children.
“The Clinic filed a habeas petition and ex parte emergency application for temporary restraining order (TRO) in U.S. District Court for the Central District of California,” Reisz says. The court responded swiftly and “enjoined ICE from removing our client and ordered him returned to Los Angeles and released.”
Training tomorrow’s advocates
The Clinic is increasingly turning to federal court to challenge the legality of immigration arrests and detentions. Students and faculty have recently filed multiple habeas petitions and TROs based on violations of the Fourth and Fifth Amendments. It is also part of the Los Angeles Rapid Response Network, providing guidance and consultation with other attorneys, including USC alumni, as well as conducting training on habeas, suppression and other timely immigration issues.
“Our summer clinic students have been working on interviewing clients and filing motions to suppress evidence in immigration court proceedings obtained through unlawful arrests,” Reisz notes.
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