This first of its kind toolkit is designed for Criminal Defenders working with noncitizen clients who may be placed in removal proceedings through the Institutional Hearing Program (IHP). The Stanford Immigrants' Rights Clinic developed these materials on behalf of the Immigrant Legal Resource Center (ILRC). A special thanks to clinic students Noelle Smith (’21), Claire Fieldman (’22), Raven Quesenberry (’22), and Drew Alvarez (’21) for their leadership developing these materials.
The toolkit involves two components:
- First, a companion guide for criminal defense attorneys that includes: an overview of IHP; best practices for protecting noncitizen clients’ rights; advice to share with clients on how clients may prepare for immigration removal proceedings; answers to clients’ common questions about the program; and an index of current IHP locations.
- Second, a “tear away” handout for defenders to share directly with clients. For ease, the tear away handout is attached as a separate document and is also included as an appendix in the main document.
While the toolkit was specifically developed for federal and state defenders practicing in California, it is applicable and useful to federal defenders across the country as well. Additionally, given that IHP is a removal program run by EOIR, ICE, and BOP, we are hopeful that the toolkit will also be helpful to the immigration bar.