LA Justice Fund Spent Millions To Help Fight Deportations

LOS ANGELES, CA — The Los Angeles Justice Fund has helped provide legal representation to about 500 undocumented immigrants facing deportation proceedings since it awarded $7.4 million to 17 nonprofits in November 2017, a representative with the fund told a City Council committee Thursday.

The fund is a public-private partnership of the city and Los Angeles County, the Weingart Foundation and California Community Foundation.

It was announced by Mayor Eric Garcetti and other government officials in December 2016 in the aftermath of President Donald Trump's election and his promise to increase deportations of immigrants in the country illegally.

The city has pledged $2 million to the fund, with the county pledging $3 million and the rest coming from philanthropic organizations.

Efrain Escobedo, a vice president with the California Community Foundation, told the Immigrant Affiars, Civil Rights and Equity Committee that the 500 cases the fund had provided lawyers for so far were out of about 2,600 people in the county who had faced deportation proceedings without a lawyer and about 4,000 overall.

"So the fund does not meet the need and we need to do more," he said.

The fund does not generally provide funding for a person facing deportation for a violent felony, and Escobedo did not provide details on if the number 4,000 referenced all people facing deportation proceedings or just those who would be eligible for the fund.

When it was announced, Garcetti and the other leaders set a goal of raising $10 million for the fund, and Escobedo noted there still is a $2.6 million gap in meeting the goal.

He said donations from other county cities could help fill the gap.

Councilman Gil Cedillo said that with 500 out of 4,000 people receiving representation, only 12 percent had received help, and that "10 million would meet our initial goal, but for us to meet the entire 78 percent would be a need for another 45 million, if we are gong to do that."

After meeting, Cedillo told City News Service that "we are excited about promoting the L.A. Justice Fund, but I think we need to be bigger and more strategic."

The fund has been criticized by some anti-illegal immigration activists for using taxpayer dollars to fight the federal government's immigration policies.

When Garcetti campaigned on behalf of mayoral candidate Joyce Craig Thursday in Manchester, New Hampshire last year, he drew criticism from New Hampshire Republican Party Chairman Jeanie Forrester for creating the fund.

City News Service; Photo: Shutterstock