Case 2:18-cv-00928-MJP Document 42 Filed 09/06/18 Page 1 of 3 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON 1 2 3 Yolany PADILLA, et al., 4 Plaintiffs, v. 5 6 7 Case No. 18-cv-0928 MJP DECLARATION OF KATHRINE RUSSELL IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS’ AMENDED MOTION FOR CLASS CERTIFICATION U.S. IMMIGRATION AND CUSTOMS ENFORCEMENT, et al., Defendants. 8 9 10 11 12 I, Kathrine Russell, hereby declare: 1. 13 I am an attorney licensed to practice law in Texas. My business address is 802 Kentucky Ave, San Antonio, TX 78201. 14 15 2. I have been practicing immigration law since 2009, and I am currently a staff attorney at Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Services (RAICES) in San Antonio, 16 17 TX. My practice primarily involves representing detained adults in removal 18 proceedings. I represent individuals before the San Antonio and Pearsall immigration 19 courts. 20 3. My colleagues and I regularly represent people who have expressed a fear of return to 21 their country of origins or an intention to apply for asylum to officials in the 22 23 Department of Homeland Security. In my experience, the Asylum Office routinely fails 24 to conduct a credible fear interview within 10 days after my clients have requested 25 asylum or expressed a fear of return. Almost always, my clients must wait at least three 26 RUSSELL DECL. Case No. 2:18 cv 00928-MJP -1 1 NORTHWEST IMMIGRANT RIGHTS PROJECT 615 Second Avenue, Suite 400 Seattle, WA 98104 Tel. (206) 957-8611 Case 2:18-cv-00928-MJP Document 42 Filed 09/06/18 Page 2 of 3 1 weeks for the interview to take place. In one case, my client waited for more than two 2 months before the Asylum Office conducted a credible fear interview. 3 4. 4 I represent detained clients whom an asylum officer has determined have a credible fear of return to their country of origin, who initially entered the country without 5 inspection, and who are eligible for release from immigration custody. I estimate that 6 my colleagues and I represent at least two such clients in bond hearings each month at 7 the South Texas Detention Complex in Pearsall, TX. 8 9 5. 10 These clients who request bond hearings after a positive credible fear determination regularly wait more than 7 days, and sometimes up to six weeks, for a bond hearing. 11 Represented clients can sometimes make motions to advance these hearings through 12 counsel, but pro se clients generally must wait until their originally scheduled dates. 13 14 6. None of our clients receive written bond decisions from immigration judges with 15 particularized findings unless they file an appeal with the Board of Immigration 16 Appeals. When the immigration judge issues a decision in these cases, it is on a 17 Custody Order of the Immigration Judge form. When an appeal is filed, if the hearing 18 was not recorded, there is no written transcript to consult. 19 I declare under penalty of perjury of the laws of the State of Texas and the United States 20 that the foregoing is true and correct to the best of my knowledge and belief. Executed the 6th 21 22 day of September 2018 in San Antonio, Texas. By: 23 s/ Katherine Russell Kathrine Russell 24 25 26 RUSSELL DECL. Case No. 2:18 cv 00928-MJP -2 2 NORTHWEST IMMIGRANT RIGHTS PROJECT 615 Second Avenue, Suite 400 Seattle, WA 98104 Tel. (206) 957-8611 Case 2:18-cv-00928-MJP Document 42 Filed 09/06/18 Page 3 of 3 1 2 3 4 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that on September 6, 2018, I filed the foregoing with the Clerk of the Court using the CM/ECF system, which will send notification of such filing to those attorneys of record registered on the CM/ECF system. All other parties shall be served in accordance with the 5 6 Federal Rules of Civil Procedure. 7 DATED this 6th day of September, 2018. 8 s/ Glenda M. Aldana Madrid Glenda M. Aldana Madrid NORTHWEST IMMIGRANT RIGHTS PROJECT 615 Second Avenue, Suite 400 Seattle, WA 98104 Telephone: (206) 957-8646 Facsimile: (206) 587-4025 E-mail: glenda@nwirp.org 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 RUSSELL DECL. Case No. 2:18 cv 00928-MJP -3 NORTHWEST IMMIGRANT RIGHTS PROJECT 615 Second Avenue, Suite 400 Seattle, WA 98104 Tel. (206) 957-8611