Guide to File a Pro Se Habeas Petition for People Detained by ICE in the Golden State Annex and Mesa Verde Detention Facilities

By using this guide, you will be proceeding as a pro se petitioner. “Pro se” is Latin for “in one’s own behalf.” This means that you will be filing this petition in court on your own without the assistance of a lawyer. Most habeas petitions are filed pro se because there is no constitutional right to a lawyer in a habeas case. This guide is designed to help you file a petition for habeas corpus without the assistance of an attorney.

This pro se guide is intended for individuals detained in the Mesa Verde and Golden State Annex detention facilities. The ICE Field Office responsible for supervising these two detention centers is located in San Francisco, CA and falls under the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California. Therefore, you will file your petition for habeas corpus in federal court in the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.

• Fill out the attached Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus. You must complete it in English. You must sign and date the petition.

• If you would like to ask the Court to appoint a free lawyer for you, fill out the attached Motion for Appointment of Counsel. But, you should be aware that in most cases, the Court will decide not to appoint you a free lawyer.

• Prepare the filing fee of $5.00 (cash, money order, or check made out to “Clerk, U.S. District Court”). If you cannot pay, see the Instructions for Filing and Application to Proceed in Forma Pauperis, attached.
   
• If you want to be considered for a free lawyer, you must apply to be “in forma pauperis” instead of paying the $5.00. “In forma pauperis” is Latin and means you are financially unable to pay the costs and fees associated with a lawsuit.
   
• Mail the originals plus two copies of everything, and the filing fee (unless you have filed an application to proceed in forma pauperis), to the address below.

Office of the Clerk
United States District Court
450 Golden Gate Ave., 16th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94102-3489

• Keep one extra copy of the entire filing for your records.

• Provide detailed information to the best of your ability and confirm that all your information is correct.

• In paragraphs 1, 6, and 10 please insert whether you are currently detained at “Golden State Annex” or “Mesa Verde.”

• In paragraph 2, insert how many months you have been detained by ICE without a bond hearing (include time you have been detained at ICE detention facilities other than Mesa Verde or Golden State Annex).
  • For example, if you were detained in Texas for 3 months, Golden State Annex for 1 month, and Mesa Verde for 9 months, you have been detained by ICE for 13 months. You would write “13” in the blank.
     
• In paragraph 19, briefly describe the claims you are pursuing in your immigration (removal) proceedings or before USCIS. Include all claims presented, such as: applications for asylum, withholding of removal, Convention Against Torture, cancellation of removal, adjustment of status, termination of proceedings, U visa, and T visa.
   
• In paragraphs 20 and 35, write the month and year ICE began detaining you.
   
• In paragraph 24, additional facts to describe could include:
   
  • Whether you have attempted to request a bond hearing from the Immigration Court, how many times you requested a bond hearing, and the response(s) you received.
     
  • Negative or abusive conditions of your detention (for example, inadequate medical care, expired food, insects, unsanitary bathrooms, abuse, solitary confinement, etc.).
     
  • Any mental health or physical health conditions you have that are caused or made worse by detention.
     
  • Total time you have been incarcerated (jail/prison) and detained (ICE).
     
  • If you have criminal convictions ICE is already aware of, you can choose to briefly describe them, and also describe your rehabilitation and remorse.
     
  • The status of your immigration case and how long you believe the case will take to be resolved, including appeals.
     
  • Why you hope to be released (What will you do when you are released? Why is it important to you to be free? Who will you spend time with (family, friends, etc.)?).
     
  • Your positive equities (for example, how long you have been in the U.S., family ties to the U.S., work history, good behavior, any training/classes you participated in while incarcerated or detained, evidence of rehabilitation, etc.).
     
  • If true, your willingness to accept electronic monitoring or other alternatives to detention if you are released.
     
  • Connections you have to family or the community that would help you if you are released.
     
  • Plans you have if you are released (such as work, housing, etc.) to demonstrate you have a plan to re-enter society in a positive way.
     
  • If you will have to check in with a parole officer after release, state your intention to do so and include the address where you will go for the check-in, if known.

    Use additional pages to write more facts, if needed.
     

• On page 19, write in the date, your name, and your signature.
   
• Also on page 19, check the box for the facility where you are detained.

Your case will be assigned to a magistrate judge. A magistrate judge is a specially appointed judge who has the authority to handle certain federal cases, if the parties agree. You and the government will have the opportunity to “consent to” or “decline” the magistrate judge. If you both “consent,” the magistrate judge will be in charge of your case. If either you or the government “declines,” you will be assigned to a district judge.

The government (ICE) will have a chance to respond to your petition. After you receive the government’s response (also called a “Return”), you can file an optional “reply” (also called a “Traverse”).

If you are moved to a different detention facility while your habeas petition is pending, be sure to inform the habeas Court. The judge should keep your case, even if ICE transfers you somewhere else.

The judge may take several months to make a decision. If your petition is granted, the judge will probably order the government to provide you a bond hearing before an Immigration Judge within a certain period of time. In rare situations, the habeas judge may directly order your release.