Human Rights

Sandy Smalley-Fleming, Jessica Sharpe and Matthew Webster

When the need arises, Fredrikson answers the call to help the most vulnerable. As previously reported, since 2018, Fredrikson lawyers have been involved with Advocates for Human Rights on behalf of the 92 Somali nationals whom ICE attempted to deport in December 2017 without their right to due process rights according to our laws.

For two days, ICE forced these deportees to sit shackled in an airplane in inhumane conditions, including 23 hours stranded on a runway in Senegal. Upon returning to the United States, these individuals were detained for up to two years as they litigated their claims for humanitarian relief. Many of the deportees had been in the United States since they were young children or adults and had no family or contacts in Somalia. In addition, many no longer spoke their native language, and some had mental health issues, which could be a death sentence in this war-torn country.

Fredrikson attorneys assisted four clients with their claims, including preparing appeals to the Board of Immigration Appeals and to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

As in many cases, representation in immigration can last for years. One of our four cases was concluded this past year. In October 2020, via video conference due to COVID-19, attorneys Sandy Smalley-Fleming, Jessica Sharpe and Matthew Webster briefed and argued the final of these cases before a three-judge panel at the Eighth Circuit. The case had taken more than two years, two appeals to the Board of Immigration Appeals and multiple motions to stay their client’s deportation to ensure that he finally had his day in court. This man had fled violence in Somalia in 1993 after he was gunned down with an AK-47 because of his ethnicity. Fearing for his life, he fled to a refugee camp in Kenya in 1993, later marrying a United States citizen and coming to America. Through a series of unfortunate events, the client’s conditional permanent resident status was terminated, and he was ultimately ordered to be removed on September 21, 2011.

In 2017, he was detained and summarily deported as one of the Somali 92 individuals and, unfortunately, like most of the Somali 92 individuals, deported while his appeals were pending. Fredrikson lawyers agreed to the representation of these clients because they felt it was important that the individuals had the opportunity to have access to justice and the court system to ensure that the rule of law would be followed.

Former Fredrikson paralegal Brenda Haberman provided critical legal and emotional support throughout the process. Additional clients were assisted by Sam Andre, James Brand, Lukas Boehning, Adam Gyurisin, Sage O’Neil, Debra Schneider, paralegals Barb MacInnis and Diana Bospachieva.