DATE:
September 30th, 2025
04
TO:
Board of Supervisors
SUBJECT
Title
ACCEPTING PHILANTHROPIC FUNDING FROM THE CONRAD PREBYS FOUNDATION TO SUPPORT THE IMMIGRANT LEGAL DEFENSE PROGRAM (DISTRICTS: ALL)
Body
OVERVIEW
Across San Diego County, communities are increasingly living in fear as federal immigration crackdowns escalate, tearing families apart and destabilizing neighborhoods. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrests in the County have increased by over 400% this yeari, with indiscriminate raids hitting neighborhood restaurants, Home Depot parking lots, and even near elementary school drop-off zones. San Diegans have voiced in strong opposition to these actions, as families are displaced and loved ones detained, often with no criminal record, by agents carrying out violent and chaotic arrests.
As family members are swept up in these raids, they are left vulnerable to an immigration system rigged against them, one that denies even the basics of due process and a fair chance to make their case. Many detained by ICE have legitimate claims for relief, including asylum seekers fleeing violence, dangerous conditions, and political persecution. For generations, our nation has stood as a refuge for such stories, offering protection and pathways for people to contribute to our communities and strengthen our regional economy. That promise is now under direct attack.
Immigration courts are unlike every other court system in the United States: they do not guarantee the right to an attorney. Families swept into these proceedings are left to face federal prosecutors alone, with no public defender to stand beside them. Without representation, cases are too often decided unfairly.
Launched in 2021, San Diego County's Immigrant Legal Defense Program (ILDP) was the first of its kind effort to provide free legal representation to people in removal proceedings. More than 2,000 cases have since received services and the results are stark: without an atto...
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