ImmDef Applauds San Diego County's $13.2M Commitment to Due Process for All

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

06/25/2026 

Contact:  

media@immdef.org, 213-634-7615 

ImmDef Applauds San Diego County's $13.2M Commitment to Due Process for All  

Investment into the Immigrant Defense Legal Program becomes the largest investment by a County to support access to legal services for detained immigrants 

SAN DIEGO, CA -  On Thursday, June 25, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors approved $13.2 million to ensure that community members facing deportation are not forced to stand alone in court. The County’s Immigrant Defense Legal Program (IDLP) guarantees that all people, regardless of citizenship status, receive fair hearings and due process. With a nearly 1500% increase in arrests in the region, it is more important than ever for attorneys to stand by immigrants and stop ICE abuses. The IDLP has already provided representation to more than 2,000 immigrants, and this investment keeps the program fully operational and ensures continued access to legal representation for detained immigrants in removal proceedings. Today, More than 10,000 immigration cases remain pending in the county. Data shows that detained people without a lawyer are 10.5% more likely to be ordered removed. The escalation of militarized immigration enforcement since 2025 has resulted in at least 16,368 deportations from the San Diego region between January 20, 2025, and April 1, 2026, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Historically, only 17% of federal immigration detainees in San Diego County had legal representation.  Meanwhile, the detained population continues to rise. Last year, the Otay Mesa ICE prison exceeded its 1,400 person capacity growing to 1,500, while ICE maintains another 640 beds at the Imperial Regional facility. 

Luis Guerra, advocacy and external relations director at Immigrant Defenders Law Center (ImmDef) shared, "ImmDef applauds the San Diego County Board of Supervisors for reaffirming the County’s commitment to keeping families together and ensuring no one faces the immigration system alone. We are grateful to the community members and advocates that made this possible. This investment strengthens a lifeline for vulnerable community members who would otherwise be swept into Trump’s militarized detention‑to‑deportation pipeline. Time and again, attorneys have stood between immigrants and abuse, stopped human rights violations, and held ICE accountable — but attorneys alone cannot meet the need created by this administration. It is high time counties across the country follow San Diego’s example and act decisively in the name of due process to protect their residents from Trump’s cruel and deadly immigration system.” 

### 

The Immigrant Defenders Law Center (ImmDef) is a next-generation social justice law firm that defends immigrant communities against injustices in the immigration system.  Our programs are a first step towards realizing the long-term goal of providing universal representation to all immigrants facing deportation. ImmDef is now the largest non‐profit, pro bono provider of deportation defense in California, with offices in Los Angeles, Riverside, Santa Ana, and San Diego. 

KEEP UP WITH IMMIGRANT DEFENDERS 

WEBSITE | INSTAGRAM | TIKTOK | X