As limited as true democracy based on economic, social and political rights is in the United States, there are many hard-won protections that we want to maintain. Including the right to vote, the right to assemble/free speech, the right for a fair trial and protection from cruel and unusual punishment and extrajudicial killing.  

As we head into election season and as people continue to face mass evictions and bankruptcy, devastating recessions, growing repression against anti-racist protestors and threats of stealing or canceling the election (not to mention plans for third and fourth terms against the constitution), we are anticipating growing demonstrations, occupations, direct action and the need for voter defense. 

Whether or not, electoral politics is where you invest your political energy, we all support the hard-won right to vote and want to see Trump, his administration and the cover he’s giving ultra-right and fascist forces OUT. 

Please look out for our soon-to-be-announced annual membership meeting, focusing on what the NLG-SFBA can do to support voter protections and election defense. The forum will also share the evolving program and committee work of the NLG and will be an opportunity to meet staff and Board members. This includes the work being done to gear up for responses to the outcome of the election and the on-going resistance to racism, evictions, cruel and unusual punishment in the form of COVID risk for those in jails and prisons. Covid has exposed government neglect and a total lack of infrastructure for basic needs including childcare, education, housing, healthcare and food for all. 

We are also launching a Federal Defense Committee to defend the movement against the federal action escalating in Portland, across the nation, and in the Bay Area. Please email me at sara@nlgsf.org if you are interested in being more involved in this work. 

Take good care during this time when so many difficult things are coming at us. And take fortification from the on-going show of mutual aid, solidarity and resistance in the face of it. 

Sara Kershnar, Interim Executive Director

Seeking:

1) An attorney to consult with and represent fourteen organizers who were arrested at Governor Newsom's house on Monday, July 27. The  #FreeThemAll14 recently published a report about their incarceration in Sacramento County Jail.  In arresting the organizers, CHP circumvented Sacramento County's emergency bail schedule, which should have resulted in a cite-and-release. CHP sought a bail increase for the misdemeanor charges, which led organizers to be incarcerated for 16 hours, during which they were denied food and water.

We are looking for an attorney who can assist organizers in filing a claim against CHP, as well as consult with them about the potential risks, strategy, and timing of a complaint. Organizers hope that their case can leverage media attention and lift up the demands for release of people from detention centers. Email demonstrations@nlgsf.org if you are interested. 

2) Seeking lawyers and legal workers willing to submit Public Record Acts requests for the Arab Resource and Organizing Center in support of their work to integrate Arab American Studies into ethnic studies curriculum both in San Francisco and statewide. Email sara@nlgsf.org if you are interested. 

3) Seeking lawyers, legal workers and/or law students to draft a Plaintiff-Cross- Appellants' Opening Brief due on October 13th. 

Norbert v. San Francisco Sheriff's Department is a 1983 lawsuit against San Francisco County Jails, pending in ND Cal.  It is based upon the fact that all SF county jails are purposely built so that no prisoner ever has the opportunity to be outdoors, to have outdoor recreation or exercise, and never has the opportunity to have sunlight on their skin.  88-90-% of all prisoners are pre-trial, and a significant number are there in excess of one year.

The trial court judge - Magistrate Kim - issued a preliminary injunction order the City and County of San Francisco to provide all prisoners, in custody for 4 years or more - to 1 hour of outdoor access per week.  She found that the total denial of access to sunlight is "punishment" and not permissible for the 88-90% of pretrial detainees.

This injunction, on one hand, is significant, because to provide even one(1) hour of outdoor access means SF has to make structural changes to their incarceration fortress.  And so, SF appealed the injunction order.  Plaintiffs cross-appealed.  We are going to argue that one hour is insufficient.

We are seeking amicus briefs to advocate for more than one hour per week, and that all prisoners should have access to outdoor recreation (14th amendment focus).  

4) Lawyers and law students willing to advise prisoners on the process of filing and drafting pro se claims. Please contact srjhotline@nlgsf.org

We are facing a time of mass evictions overlayed with climate, public health, and economic crises. It is imperative that we protect and defend access to secure housing and resources needed to survive these times. The Right to Shelter group reconvened last week to discuss eviction defense and emergency housing. We identified the following potential strategies:

- Civil disobedience with housing attorneys to block the courts

- Developing court watch program for evictions

- Know Your Rights Training for lawyers on Defending Occupation of Housing using case studies such as: Moms 4 Housing, House Keys not Handcuffs, Homes Not Jail

- Training on Destigmatizing Bankruptcy: highlighting the usefulness of filing for bankruptcy as a tool for eviction defense

 *If you would like to get involved, please email our  Program Director, Eliana Rubin, eliana@nlgsf.org

In addition to continuing to file and receive PRA requests, MeTooBehindBars is putting together a Know Your Rights pamphlet to provide queer, transgender and gender expansive people in prison and jail with information on their rights when they experience sexual harassment, assault and discrimination, including homophobia and transphobia. The pamphlet will include what they or their loved ones can do to report incidences and conditions of sexual and gender-based violence. It will also offer routes for seeking justice and accountability as well as resources for addressing the impact.

*If you would like to get involved in NLG-SF's #MeTooBehindBars committee, please email Program Director, Eliana Rubin, eliana@nlgsf.org

Since the beginning of September, the overall population at Santa Rita Jail has increased by 68, to nearly 2000 people. The jail has now seen a total of 244 Covid-19 infections since March. The Sheriff’s daily reporting of statistics including the number of Covid-19 tests administered and the number of “active” cases continue to be a source of concern for community members, advocates, and prisoners – many of whom have reported being denied a test despite experiencing symptoms of the virus. Between August 25 and August 26, the jail reported a 60 percent decrease in active Covid-19 cases – from 25 to only 10. On September 15, the jail reported zero active Covid-19 cases – yet there are still 7 RED patients. Red patients include both patients with COVID-19 symptoms awaiting test results and patients with positive COVID-19 results.

The fact that on multiple occasions, dozens of prisoners have been declared “recovered” seemingly overnight, is cause for serious concern. Santa Rita medical provider Wellpath uses a “non-testing method” to determine recovery, despite the fact that the county has no shortage of tests. This method, which involves monitoring a prisoner’s temperature and oxygen levels, has contributed to the lack of palliative care because basic comforts such as cough drops supposedly mask symptoms of Covid-19 and make it more difficult to determine whether someone has recovered. Despite this, many prisoners who are declared “recovered” report that they are still experiencing lingering, uncomfortable symptoms of the virus.

In the first week of September:

- 2 hotline callers and 2 mail correspondents reported that they were refused Covid-19 tests. 
- 2 hotline callers reported being refused the use of a rescue inhaler.
- 3 hotline callers reported being refused medical care.
- One hotline caller reported two instances of deputies failing to wear masks, both in Housing Unit 6 and at the Dublin Courthouse on August 27.

In the week of September 7-13:

- 3 hotline callers reported being refused medical care.
- 2 hotline callers reported that grievances that they filed about a lack of care for their medical conditions – including a tooth abscess and opiate withdrawal – were summarily denied.
- One hotline caller reported food contamination.

A prisoner who tested positive for Covid-19 on August 14 reported on September 1 that he was declared recovered on August 24 and removed from Housing Unit 8C (for known Covid-19 cases) after less than 10 days. During his time in quarantine, his fever reached 106 degrees, yet he was provided with no medical or palliative care – such as cough syrup or Tylenol – aside from the daily monitoring of his temperature and oxygen levels. He is still experiencing headaches, dizziness, and loss of smell and taste.

Another prisoner who tested positive for Covid-19 contacted the hotline on September 1 to report that he was declared recovered on July 20, but never received a test to confirm this. While he was acutely ill with Covid-19, he was transferred to the Outpatient Housing Unit (OPHU) with a fever of 104 degrees. While in the OPHU, he never received any clean clothes, nor treatment for his symptoms aside from a daily Tylenol. He believes that he is still sick, and is experiencing chills, nausea, and difficulty breathing. 

On September 10, a prisoner called to report that he found pieces of metal, possibly razor blades, in his food. Food contamination is severe and frequent enough that in previous weeks, hotline callers have  reported finding rodent feces, live moths, and dead mice in their food. Santa Rita’s kitchen is run by Aramark, a third-party contractor which, along with the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office, is a defendant in a class action lawsuit which alleges that prisoners are forced to work for no pay under threat of punishment. Kitchen workers prepare meals not only for Santa Rita Jail but for other Bay Area jails which contract with Aramark. Housing Unit 25, which housed kitchen workers, was also the site of the jail’s largest outbreak of Covid-19 to date. On July 17 alone, 40 people tested positive. In the following days, the number of infected people increased to at least 106 people. 

Prisoners have been reporting the appalling food, poor sanitation, and abusive labor conditions in the kitchen since well before the pandemic. The jail suppresses prisoner self-advocacy through the grievance system by summarily denying grievances related to food. Rather than address the abysmal kitchen sanitation which is the root cause of the food contamination, deputies instruct prisoners to throw away contaminants such as moths and rodent droppings. Once the evidence is gone, the grievance is marked as “resolved.”

A kitchen worker who spoke with representatives from the CDC in early July reported cockroaches and birds in the kitchen, as well as a persistent rodent problem in both the kitchen and multiple housing units. She was subjected to intense retaliation for speaking out, including the loss of all of her phone and visiting privileges, being fired from her kitchen job, and the withholding of medication which was prescribed by an outside physician. Due to the retaliation, she was unable to contact the hotline again until September 1. She reported that she is now scared to file any further grievances about the kitchen.

----

The Santa Rita Jail Hotline works directly with prisoners to determine how they were exposed to Covid-19 and whether the care they are receiving is adequate. Hotline calls suggest a very different reality than what is being presented to the public. If you are interested to become a hotline worker, please fill out this form.

On September 1, Moms 4 Housing rallied at the Alameda County Board of Supervisors building to launch the Homes Not Harm Agenda: to defund the Sheriff, a moratorium on all evictions, cancellation of rent and mortgage debt, and a permanent ban on the use of law enforcement in carrying out evictions.

On September 2, Defund SFPD marched from Mission High School to demand that the San Francisco Board of Supervisors defund and disarm the SFPD. The Supervisors and Appropriations Committee recently approved a budget that cuts the $700 million police budget by only 6 percent and prioritized the continued employment of all SFPD officers.

On Friday, September 4th, five young activists from Antioch began a hunger strike in front of the Antioch Police Department to demand the termination of Officer Michael Mellone, who shot Luis Góngora Pat in San Francisco in 2016. They are also demanding the resignation of Steve Aiello, President of the Antioch Police Officers' Association; as well as the greater integration of community representatives into a local forum on police violence.

Hunger strikers have now maintained their occupation for ten consecutive nights. They have experienced harassment from rightwing, pro-police agitators who have thrown eggs at the activists, shouted at them, and drive at high speeds past the encampment on a regular basis. On September 12, Together We Stand and Bay Resistance organized a march and car caravan to the site of the encampment at 300 L Street. Speakers included a woman who was a direct eyewitness to the murder of Luis Góngora Pat in 2016. 

 The “6 Forced to Strike” were served with an eviction notice from Antioch PD on Monday, September 14, despite the fact that their occupation is not blocking any access points to and from the station. Community members and NLG-SF legal observers mobilized at the occupation site beginning Monday night. Please contact demonstrations@nlgsf.org if you can assist with ongoing legal observation at the occupation site.

On September 7, Labor Day, protesters marched across Golden Gate Bridge in support of Black lives and to reclaim the bridge after the previous weekend’s demonstration by Trump supporters, at which several counter-protesters were harassed and arrested. There was a large CHP presence at the march, and at least four people were arrested for obstruction and disturbing the peace.

A large number of demonstrations were postponed during the week of September 7 due to hazardous air quality that is threatening the well-being of people up and down the West Coast. 

As many jurisdictions continue to postpone immigration hearings for non-detained cases, social distancing orders remain in place, and detained hearings march ahead, our local program of remote court watch and support has been looked at as an innovative model. Coalition partner Freedom for Immigrants and NLG-SF Bay Area have been packing the court virtually to support detained individuals and their families and to keep an eye on what is taking place in SF Immigration Court. We have been consulted by local groups and national organizations on how to run virtual court watch as others also are duly concerned about the proceedings in immigration court, which in some ways are more inaccessible and more obscured than ever. We look forward to serving as a resource and learning with others as we all forge on in navigating the US immigration system during this pandemic. 

RESOURCES

SPANISH LANGUAGE WEBINAR FOR SUPPORTING INCARCERATED LOVED ONES — SEP. 16, 3:30-5pm PT

How to Defend My Incarcerated Loved One During COVID-19 and ICE Detention — If you have a loved one incarcerated that has been transferred to ICE or is in the process to be released from Jail or Prison in California and is facing deportation, this webinar is for you! While it is completely in Spanish, English closed captions and bilingual resources will be provided. 

Register here to join us on September 16th at 3:30 pm.

Facebook event page// página del evento en Facebook

Cómo Defender a mi Ser Querido Encarcelado durante COVID-19 y las Detenciones de ICE — una tarde llena de información vital para las familias con un ser querido encarcelado en California o a punto de ser trasladado a una detención de inmigración después de ser liberado de la cárcel. Conozca sus opciones y derechos y aprenda cómo ayudar a su ser querido desde su casa.

¡Haga clic aquí para confirmar su asistencia!

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CGRS PRACTICE ADVISORY ON GRACE V. BARR (MATTER OF A-B)

The Center for Gender and Refugee Studies (CGRS) recently released a new practice advisory co-authored with the ACLU on Grace v. Barr, which challenged various policies created by Matter of A-B- and accompanying USCIS Policy Memorandum as applied in credible fear proceedings. On 7/17/20, the Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit affirmed in part and reversed in part a permanent injunction issued by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. This advisory provides a summary of the D.C. Circuit’s opinion and its impact on the injunction entered by the District Court. It also offers practical guidance on the impact of the Grace litigation for asylum seekers at the CFI stage and before the asylum office and the EOIR.  

This advisory is available by request through the following form: Grace v. Barr Practice Advisory. 

Please do not circulate or distribute these materials or share the download links without authorization from CGRS.

To request additional resources or assistance in a new fear-of-return case, please fill out a CGRS assistance request form here.

NON-DETAINED HEARINGS RESUME IN SF -- AS OF MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 28

San Francisco and Sacramento Immigration Courts will resume non-detained hearings on Monday, September 28, 2020. Additional information is available at the SF Immigration Court website and the Sacramento Immigration Court website.

SIGN PETITION TO DEMAND BEST WESTERN STOP ALLOWING ICE TO DETAIN CHILDREN AND OTHER MIGRANTS AT ITS HOTELS

Since the beginning of the year, over 100 migrants — many believed to be children — have been detained at the Best Western Plus Dragon Gate Inn by MVM, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) contractor. Tell the hotel’s executives to stop participating in a shadowy system for secretly detaining migrant children. Sign the petition to demand that Best Western executives stop allowing ICE and its private contractors to detain migrants in their hotels.

MIGRATION POLICY INSTITUTE’S IMMIGRATION LAW AND POLICY CONFERENCE — MON-TUE, SEP. 21 & 22, 11am-2pm PT

The conference, organized annually by the Migration Policy Institute (MPI), Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc., and Georgetown University Law Center, offers an opportunity to go beyond the headlines with thoughtful analysis from leading experts. Join them for a virtual conference spanning two afternoons of engaging discussions with smart thinkers and expert analysis from leading government officials, attorneys, policy analysts, advocates, and others.

Register Here.

ASYLUM SEMINAR BY LCCRSF -- TUESDAY, SEP. 22, 9am-6pm PT

The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area (LCCRSF) presents our Fall 2020 Asylum Seminar providing an in-depth, online training in asylum law and procedure, best practices by seasoned immigration attorneys, and a discussion of hot topics relevant to recent developments in this rapidly changing area of law.

Register Here.