August 18, 2023
ALBANY, N.Y.— Over two dozen national and New York-based advocates for immigrant survivors of violence today called on Governor Hochul to sign the Fair Courts for Immigrant New Yorkers Act into law to offer critical protections for immigrant survivors of gender based violence in the criminal legal system. The bill is sponsored by Senator Kavanagh and Assemblymember Cruz.
The twenty-nine organizations work with and address the needs of immigrant survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, forced marriage, and child abuse. The letter they signed urges the Governor to sign the bill, which passed the legislature in June for the second time. The bill would ensure that immigrant New Yorkers facing criminal charges get a clear notification that there could be harsh immigration consequences and be alerted to get the advice they are constitutionally entitled to from their attorneys.
See the letter here and the full press release with ASISTA here.