Excerpts from Clinic Publications

Community and Education


Immigrant's Rights: Rethinking Reentry InfographicRethinking Reentry: Prosecution, Defense and Human Rights Perspectives

The Penn State Law Center for Immigrants’ Rights Clinic led a discussion on illegal entry and reentry prosecutions under 8 U.S.C. §§ 1325-1326. The panel discussion featured Peter J. Smith, U.S. attorney for the Middle District of Pennsylvania; Heidi Freese, assistant federal public defender for the Middle District of Pennsylvania; Grace Meng, senior researcher for the U.S. Program of Human Rights Watch; and Lori Ulrich, assistant federal public defender for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

April 21, 2016 Rethinking Reentry Press Release and Additional Materials


Penn State Law Takeaway Materials from Immigration Raid PanelTakeaway Materials from the Panel Discussion about the June 2014 Immigration Raid in State College, PA

This is a compilation of all the materials provided to the event attendees. The materials include: a program pamphlet, a postcard with a personal account of a noncitizen living in State College (in both English and Spanish), an immigration myths-and-facts brochure, slides from Professor Shoba Sivaprasad Wadhia’s presentation during the panel discussion, and the event flier.

Held November 18, 2014

Practitioner Tools


Practitioner's ToolKit on Cancellation or Removal for Lawful Permanent Residents, 2016Practitioner’s Toolkit on Cancellation of Removal for Lawful Permanent Residents

Created on behalf of the Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center (PIRC), the toolkit is a resource for immigration attorneys representing lawful permanent residents who are facing removal from the United States.

The 2016 toolkit includes information about:

  • aggravated felonies,
  • detention,
  • the discretionary component of Cancellation of Removal,
  • who is ineligible for LPR Cancellation of Removal,
  • steps to take to apply for LPR Cancellation of Removal,
  • steps for obtaining client records, and
  • alternative remedies.

May 16, 2016 Cancellation of Removal Toolkit Press Release

Policy Reports

October 22, 2013


Immigration Relief for Victims of Abuse and Domestic Violence: A Practitioner's Guide to Serving Non-Citizens, July 2012 Immigration Relief for Victims of Abuse and Domestic Violence

by the Centre County Women’s Resource Center’s Civil Legal Representation Project

Advocates and attorneys who work with victims of domestic violence need to understand the dynamics of power and control and how they affect the safety of their clients. This understanding is especially important in working with non-citizen victims who often face additional hurdles compared to American citizens. The Penn State Law Center for Immigrants’ Rights Clinic has published Immigration Relief for Victims of Abuse and Domestic Violence, a toolkit to help practitioners in representing immigrant victims of domestic abuse.

Published July 17, 2012


Leveling the Playing Field: Reforming the H-2B Program to Protect Guestworkers and U.S. WorkersLeveling the Playing Field: Reforming the H-2B Program to Protect Guestworkers and U.S. Workers

by Penn State Dickinson School of Law and the National Guestworker Alliance

This report highlights cases of exploitation from Texas to Tennessee, and calls for four indispensable reforms that would end employer abuse and protect both guest workers and U.S. workers:

  • Guaranteeing guest workers the right to organize without fear of retaliation;
  • Prohibiting employers from using guest workers as cheap, exploitable alternatives to U.S. workers;
  • Eliminating debt servitude and other elements of human trafficking in the program; and
  • Subjecting employers to meaningful government enforcement and community oversight.

June 21, 2012 Reforming H-2B Press Release


The One-Year Asylum Deadline and the BIA: No Protection, No ProcessThe One-Year Asylum Deadline and the BIA: No Protection, No Process

by the National Immigrant Justice Center and Human Rights First

The right to seek asylum from persecution is a fundamental and long-recognized human right. The United States committed to protecting refugees in 1967 when it signed the Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees and later enacted legislation to incorporate the Protocol’s key provisions into domestic law. Despite these commitments, in 1996 Congress enacted a filing deadline for asylum applications which has resulted in potentially denying protections to thousands of legitimate refugees.

October 21, 2010 One-Year Asylum Deadine Press Release

 

For more publications by the Penn State Law Center for Immigrants' Rights Clinic, please visit their website at https://pennstatelaw.psu.edu/practice-skills/clinics/center-immigrants-rights