We wanted to let you know that today, the Justice Action Center, a new organization focusing on impact litigation, filed a lawsuit against DHS and DOJ senior officials on behalf of an unaccompanied minor who was wrongfully detained in adult immigrant detention based on unreliable forensic testing. The minor, named Jose, was detained in violation of release requirements for unaccompanied children.

The lawsuit, filed today in the federal district court in the Central District of California, seeks to release Jose from adult immigrant detention, where he has been incarcerated for almost a year since he turned 18 years old. Jose fled Guatemala in 2017 after a gang shot him in the stomach and left him in the street to die, after he refused to carry out an extortion attempt.

The lawsuit filing also launches the *new* Justice Action Center, a national organization that fights for immigrant justice through impact litigation and storytelling, focusing resources on important civil rights abuses that have gone unchallenged. In addition to litigating cases that will have a large impact on immigrants’ rights and in locations that are currently underserved, the Center will partner with community-based service organizations to provide impact litigation expertise and communications infrastructure.

A press release from the Justice Action Center is below.

Justice Action Center Sues Trump Administration Over Unlawful Detention of Unaccompanied Minor
Lawsuit is the first brought forth by the new organization, launching today to combine impact litigation with powerful storytelling

LOS ANGELES, CA – Today, the Justice Action Center, a new organization focusing on impact litigation, is filing a lawsuit along with its partners at Immigrant Defenders Law Center and Mayer Brown LLP against senior officials at the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice on behalf of an unaccompanied minor who was wrongfully detained in adult immigrant detention based on unreliable forensic testing. The minor, named Jose, was detained in violation of release requirements for unaccompanied children.

The lawsuit, filed today in the federal district court in the Central District of California, seeks to release Jose from adult immigrant detention, where he has been incarcerated for almost a year since he turned 18 years old. Jose fled Guatemala in 2017 after a gang shot him in the stomach and left him in the street to die, after he refused to carry out an extortion attempt.

“The Immdef team has been fighting to free Jose and give him a chance at justice since we first met him, when he was a 17-year-old child being imprisoned with adults in horrific conditions in a prison in Orange County, Calif.,” said Immigrant Defenders Law Center Executive Director Lindsay Tocylowski. “We are grateful to the Justice Action Center for their partnership in helping us to hold the government accountable for the injustices they perpetrated on our client.”

For this case, ImmDef teamed up with the Justice Action Center specifically for their federal litigation expertise to ensure their client received the best defense possible.

The lawsuit filing also launches the new Justice Action Center, a national organization that fights for immigrant justice through impact litigation and storytelling, focusing resources on important civil rights abuses that have gone unchallenged.

In addition to litigating cases that will have a large impact on immigrants’ rights and in locations that are currently underserved, the Center will partner with community-based service organizations to provide impact litigation expertise and communications infrastructure.

“My vision for the Justice Action Center is to bring fierce courtroom advocacy to currently unseen problems and to harness the power of the digital landscape to achieve lasting justice for immigrants,” said Karen Tumlin, Founder and Director of the Justice Action Center. “There is tremendous untapped potential in how litigation can be combined with smart storytelling to change the corrosive narrative around immigrants and immigration in America.”

Tumlin, a longtime civil rights litigator and nationally-recognized immigrant rights expert, is the former Legal Director of the National Immigration Law Center. She successfully litigated numerous cases of national significance, including the Muslim ban and the constitutional challenge to Arizona’s notorious anti-immigrant law, SB 1070.

Tumlin is also part of the counsel team for McAleenan v. Batalla Vidal that will challenge the Trump Administration’s effort to end the DACA program at the Supreme Court. Oral arguments in the case begin November 12, with a ruling expected as early as January 2020.

"Karen Tumlin is a pillar in the immigrants’ rights movement. She leads with integrity and thoughtful strategies. And most of all, with heart and with great respect for community," said Cecillia Wang, an experienced trial and appellate attorney who sits on the Justice Action Center advisory board. "Karen’s expertise will be a tremendous asset to this organization, and will help maximize the collective impact of the overall immigrant rights movement.”

Learn more about the Justice Action Center here, or on Facebook, Twitter (@jactioncenter) and Instagram.

About the Justice Action Center: The Justice Action Center is a nonprofit organization with an application for 501(c)3 nonprofit status pending that fights for immigrant justice through impact litigation and storytelling, focusing resources on important civil rights abuses that have gone unchallenged. We believe that in order to achieve real, lasting wins for immigrant communities, we need to reach, engage and inspire a more diverse cross-section of support for humane treatment of immigrants while harnessing the power of technology and digital advocacy. Learn more about the Justice Action Center here, or on Facebook, Twitter (@jactioncenter) and Instagram.

About the Immigrant Defenders Law Center: Immigrant Defenders Law Center (ImmDef) is a 501(c)3 non-profit social justice law firm that defends our immigrant communities against injustices in the deportation system. Founded in 2015 by a group of experienced public interest immigration lawyers, we believe that the right to counsel in immigration court is a necessary step towards ensuring due process for all and our model of universal representation is built on this principle. It is our long‐term goal to ensure that no immigrant is forced to go to court alone. Visit our website here and follow us on social media on our Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.