By Dan McKibben

"Stop resisting, fag!" the five deputies barked at the inmate while they beat him, leaving him bruised from head to toe and immobile for days.

This is life for gay, bisexual and transgender (GBT) people incarcerated at West Valley Detention Center. In the mere two months I served there, I witnessed six occasions of an unprovoked inmate beating by deputies while uttering bigoted slurs.

Inmates who identify as GBT are not only punished for what we've done, but are also dealt an extra layer of punishment because of who we are. Because I am gay, I had to serve more time and under much worse conditions than those inmates who identified otherwise.

GBT inmates at West Valley are housed in the so-called "Alternative Lifestyle Tank" (ALT). The tank is meant to keep us safe from potential harm, but instead we suffered a different type of harm.

On average, I was only allowed to leave my cell for 30 minutes a day. Most other people in the jail are out all day or, at worst, three hours a day. I was not allowed to work or participate in the rehab or educational programs that others had the chance to access. People in the work program not only learn skills and get special privileges but also earn credits that count toward reducing the length of their sentences. I repeatedly asked jail officials if I could work and each time I was told I was not allowed because I was housed in the ALT.

I knew of others who hoped to kick their drug habits through rehab programs, but we are not provided access to the rehab facility. And others wanted to do the vocational programs – like the culinary program – or get their GED, but were told that GBT inmates are not allowed.

As a former deputy sheriff and a private investigator for nearly 25 years, I know that justice must be served to those convicted, but the system is supposed to be (or at least, try to be) fair.

So, today, I joined ACLU SoCal and Kaye, McLane, Bednarski & Litt, LLP in a lawsuit against the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department for discriminating against me, and all other GBT people who are imprisoned in the ALT at West Valley.

It is wholly unfair and un-American to make us serve longer sentences or harass or abuse us because of our sexual orientation or gender identity. What's more, by denying inmates any rehabilitation programs, the county strips us of the chance to better ourselves while in jail and gain skills that will help us reenter our communities on solid footing and reduce the chances we'll ever find ourselves back in jail again.

Dan McKibben is a plaintiff in McKibben v. McMahon, a lawsuit filed by the ACLU of Southern California and Kaye, McLane, Bednarski & Litt, LLP against the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department over discriminatory policies at the West Valley Detention Center that deny gay, bisexual and transgender inmates equal access to work, recreation and rehabilitative programs solely based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.​

By Beth Werlin, American Immigration Council & Kristin Macleod-Ball, American Immigration Council

Each week, in immigration courts across the United States, hundreds of children, some as young as a few months old, come before immigration judges and are called upon to defend themselves against deportation. Among them is Arturo,* a three year old who arrived at the United States border in April 2014 because family members feared for his life in El Salvador. Although he is only a toddler, the government has put Arturo into deportation proceedings on his own. He has no attorney to help him explain to the court why he should not be deported.

Arturo's case is not unusual. According to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse, less than a third of children with immigration cases pending in June 2014 had legal representation.

On Tuesday, the child plaintiffs in J.E.F.M. v. Holder, a nationwide class action seeking to ensure that all children in immigration court have legal representation, asked the federal court presiding over the case to add Arturo and two other children to the lawsuit. In J.E.F.M., the plaintiffs are challenging the government's long-standing failure to provide counsel to children in immigration court and asking the court to order the government to appoint legal representation for unrepresented children facing deportation.

The government has moved to dismiss the suit, arguing that none of the children has been harmed by the lack of representation. But the new plaintiffs and countless other children across the country are being deprived a fair immigration court hearing and are suffering real harm from the government's failure to provide them legal representation.

Arturo was conceived when his mother was raped when she was only 15 years old. After she faced continuing threats from her rapist, Arturo's mother fled El Salvador and left her son in the care of his aunt. However, because his family continued to fear for his safety in El Salvador, Arturo was brought to the border in Texas, taken into custody by the government, and put into deportation proceedings. He is now in the care of his mother in Los Angeles, who is a lawful permanent resident. Without legal assistance, Arturo has no way to explain to the immigration court whether he may be eligible for protection in the United States.

Arturo and other children bringing the case illustrate just how critical it is that children have legal representation in their immigration court proceedings. And yet, in recent months, the government has instituted policies that actually exacerbate the problem. Over the summer, the government announced that it would prioritize the immigration cases of children over those of most adults, creating new "rocket dockets"that give children even less opportunity to find legal help.

Although the government claims that immigration judges have authority to provide children with time to find legal assistance, attorneys and court observers around the country report that children are receiving less time to find attorneys. The problem is made worse because the government is initiating deportation cases against increasing numbers of children, severely straining the limited pro bono legal services available. Moreover, court observers report that immigration judges are asking children to complete complex forms like asylum applications, which must be completed in English, not their native language.

As plaintiffs in J.E.F.M. argue, children simply cannot adequately prepare for these cases on their own. An immigration court system that requires them to do so is fundamentally unfair and violates due process.

The J.E.F.M. child plaintiffs are represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, American Immigration Council, Northwest Immigrant Rights Project, Public Counsel, and K&L Gates LLP.

*Name changed to protect our client's identity

Blog post adapted and cross-posted from Immigration Impact.

 

At the West Valley Detention Center in San Bernardino County, gay, bisexual, and transgender (GBT) people are punished twice: first, for the crimes they allegedly committed and again, simply for being GBT. Unlike non-GBT inmates who are housed in dorms or are out of their cells most non-sleeping hours, GBT prisoners languish in an anachronistically dubbed "Alternative Lifestyle Tank."
Here, they are kept in their cells for an average of 22 hours each day and are given no access to the center's programs and facilities provided to non-GBT prisoners. They are prohibited from attending congressional prayer, and denied access to GED classes, rehabilitation programs and work opportunities -- all because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

The denials of education, work and rehabilitation are particularly galling, as participation in these programs can not only reduce the time they serve, but can also facilitate their integration back into society, reducing recidivism rates and the strain on our already overburdened criminal justice system.

Although in most instances WVDC staff have claimed that this harsh treatment is for their “protection,” protective custody and equal protection are not mutually exclusive. Jails and prisons cannot justify discriminatory treatment of LGBT prisoners under the guise of keeping them "safe."

While there can be no doubt that LGBT prisoners are often vulnerable to harassment and assaults by other prisoners and many need protection, it is both possible and imperative that our correctional facilities ensure the safety of their charges while providing equal access to programs, privileges and facilities, as required by the Prison Rape Elimination Act and our constitutional guarantee of equal protection.

Jails are simply not Constitution-free zones.

As Lawrence v. Texas, Romer v. Evans and the movement for the freedom to marry show, state sanctioned discrimination against LGBT persons cannot stand. However, while we are no doubt making great strides towards complete legal equality, too many LGBT persons are still subjected to discrimination and harassment in the criminal justice system simply because of who they are.

That is why today we filed a class action lawsuit against San Bernardino County over its discriminatory policies at the West Valley Detention Center that deny GBT inmates equal access to work, recreation and rehabilitative programs solely based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.

It is true that “​you can judge a society by how well it treats its prisoners.” We are being judged, and we cannot turn a blind eye.

Brendan Hamme is staff attorney at the ACLU of Southern California. Follow ACLU SoCal on Twitter.