ACCORDING TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES WE ALL HAVE RIGHTS NO MATTER WHO IS PRESIDENT.

Know Your Rights

In preparation for the coming year and the new President Trump with his macabre plans, I am giving you information about your rights if you are detained by an immigration agent. As explained below no matter who the president is, whether you are a citizen or not, you have certain rights under the constitution and laws of the United States, This information comes directly from the National Immigration Law Center which explains some of your rights, we will also be providing you with cards explaining your rights and if you would like me to represent you as an attorney, giving information so you can call me in case you are detained, we do not want to alarm anyone, we do not know exactly what will happen but it is good to be prepared.

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ACCORDING TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES WE ALL HAVE RIGHTS NO MATTER WHO IS PRESIDENT.

Regardless of who the president is, all people living in the United States have basic rights under the U.S. Constitution. Undocumented immigrants also have these rights. It is important that we all know and protect our basic rights.

If you find yourself in a situation where you have to respond to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers, or any other agent whether in your home, on the street, or anywhere else, remember that you have the rights described below and suggestions on what to do to assert your rights.

You have the right to remain silent. You may refuse to speak to immigration officials. Do not answer any questions. You can say that you want to remain silent. Do not say anything about where you were born or how you entered the United States.

Carry a Know Your Rights card with you and show it if you are stopped by an immigration officer. This card explains that you are going to remain silent and that you want to speak to a lawyer. You may use the card attached below.

Do not open your door. In order to enter your home the officers must have a search warrant signed by the judge. Do not open your door unless an officer shows you a search warrant (they almost never have one) and if they do they may put it against a window or slide it under the door. For the warrant to be valid it must have your correct name and address on it.

You should not open the door to speak to an ICE agent. Once you open the door it will be much harder to refuse to answer questions.

You have the right to speak to an attorney. You can simply say, "I need to speak to my lawyer. You can have a lawyer by your side if ICE or another law enforcement agency questions you.

Before you sign anything, talk to a lawyer. ICE may try to get you to sign to waive your right to see a lawyer or a judge. Make sure you really understand what the document says before you sign it.

Always carry any valid immigration documents you have with you. For example, if you have a valid work permit or green card, keep it handy in case it needs to be shown for identification purposes.

Do not carry documents from another country, such as a foreign passport. These can be used against you in deportation proceedings.

If you are afraid that ICE will arrest you, tell the officer if you have children. If you are a parent or primary caregiver of a U.S. citizen or permanent resident under the age of 18, ICE can "exercise discretion" and release you.

ICE and other law enforcement officers may believe they can violate your rights without consequences. Sometimes ICE agents lie to people to get them to open their doors or sign a document waiving their rights. If ICE detains you or you are concerned about a raid in your area, you can do the following:

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Make a safety plan:

Learn by heart the phone number of a friend, family member, or lawyer you can call in case you are arrested.

If you care for minors or others, make a plan for someone to care for them in case you are arrested.

Keep important documents, such as birth certificates and immigration documents, in a safe place where a friend or family member can find them if necessary.

Tell your loved ones how to find you in case ICE detains you. You can use ICE's online detainee locator (https://locator.ice.gov/odls/homePage.do) to find an adult who is in the custody of immigration agents. Or you can call the local ICE office (https://www.ice.gov/contact/ero). Verify that they write down your alien registration number, if you have one.

You can call the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) hotline at 1-800-898-7180 (toll-free) 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to get information about the status of your case.

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Report and document raids and arrests.

If it is safe to do so, take photos and videos of the raid or arrest. Also take notes about what happened.

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Grand Rapids rapid response to ICE: info@grrapidresponsetoice.org

From 6 am - 6 pm Monday - Friday dial 211 to report ICE activity.

Evenings and weekends: 616-238-0081.

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United We Dream is a national group to report a raid: 1-844-363-1423.

Send text messages to 877877.

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Get legal help.

You can call my office 616-235-4577, we are a private office and there is a fee for your consultation although sometimes especially if it is a raid or emergency case we can give information for free.

You can also find non-profit organizations that provide low cost help at www.immigrationlawhelp.org .

The immigration courts have a list of lawyers and organizations that provide free legal services: www.justice.gov/eoir/list-pro-bono-legal-service-providers-map .

At https://www/immi.org/en/Info/FindLegalHelp  there is a search engine where you can put in your zip code and get a list of all legal services near your area.

You can find an immigration lawyer in the American Immigration Lawyers Association's online directory, www.ailalawyer.com .

The National Immigration Project of the National Bar Association also has an online tool for finding a lawyer: https://nipnlg.org/work/find-attorney .

If you need help paying an immigration bond for a person detained with ICE you can call Kent I Bond 616 or my office 616-235-4577.

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KNOW YOUR RIGHTS!

If you are stopped by the police or an immigration agent:

• Give this card to the officer and remain silent.
• The card explains that you are exercising your right to refuse to answer questions until you can speak to an attorney.
  
  

To: Immigration agent or other officer

At this time I choose to exercise my legal rights.

• I will remain silent and refuse to answer your questions.
• If I am detained, I have the right to contact an attorney immediately.
• I refuse to sign anything without the advice of an attorney.