Our Immigration Impact Lab recently has been working with “Javi,” a young man from El Salvador who came to the U.S. as an unaccompanied child when he was 8. “Javi” is now 19 and is detained in Farmville, Virginia. He is in removal proceedings but also has an I-485 application pending at USCIS that would allow him to adjust status and become a lawful permanent resident (green card holder). We believe USCIS will deny that application soon, so we are looking for a pro bono team to refile his I-485 application with that agency.

The background of Javi’s immigration journey includes that he successfully applied for Special Immigrant Juvenile (SIJ) approval when he was still very young. USCIS approved his I-360 SIJ application back in 2017, which made Javi eligible to adjust status and obtain his green card years ago. Unfortunately, Javi had not done that until recently. The I-485 application and adjustment are the final steps that a Special Immigrant Juvenile must complete to become a green card holder and obtain permanent immigration status.

In 2020, when Javi was still a minor (around 15 years old), he was arrested in New York following an incident in which an adult offered to pay him and a friend of his for sex. When the adult did not pay, Javi and his friend assaulted and robbed him. It’s unclear why the adult was not charged as well. Javi received a youthful offender adjudication for second degree robbery with supervised probation. Later, he moved to Virginia and the Virginia probation office assumed jurisdiction. In June 2023, ICE detained Javi on the grounds that the probation office believed that he was involved with a gang. Javi has been detained since then.

Javi’s mother retained private counsel based in New York who filed an I-485 application for Javi with USCIS. This past August, USCIS interviewed Javi about that application. When questioning veered into the contents of a sealed presentencing report from the New York conviction mentioned above, counsel paused the interview.

Due to the length and circumstances of Javi’s detention, our Lab worked with Javi to seek habeas relief, and the district court ordered a bond hearing. At the bond hearing in September, DHS made arguments based on the same presentence report that was in contention during the USCIS hearing. The immigration judge denied bond the next day, and we have appealed that decision. The bond appeal is pending at the Board of Immigration Appeals.

A few days after the judge denied release on bond, USCIS issued a Notice of Intent to Deny (NOID), stating that while Javi was eligible to adjust and not barred by his youthful offender adjudication, the facts from the presentencing report combined with past gang ties, his early struggles in residential treatment, and the IJ’s denial of bond were all sufficient to deny him on discretion. Javi’s private counsel responded to the NOID on October 30.

We expect USCIS to issue its denial of Javi’s 485 application soon. When that happens, Javi will need a pro bono team to refile his application, as he can no longer afford to pay counsel in New York. We plan to continue seeking release from detention for Javi, and we will mentor the pro bono team through the I-485 refiling.

At some point, Javi may also need pro bono representation in his immigration proceedings, which currently remain administratively closed. He may also be eligible for a U visa based the fact that an adult had sex with him when he was around 15 years old. Currently, we are asking a pro bono team to commit only to the refiling of the I-485 application to adjust status.

All Amica Center matters placed with a pro bono team are robustly mentored by an Amica Center attorney. Our mentoring program includes an opening meeting to discuss the scope and process of the matter, provision of samples, guidance on the law, review of draft filings, assistance with client contact, and guidance on preparation for interviews and hearings.

• Timeline: Refile I-485 at USCIS expeditiously
• Location: Farmville, Virginia (detained)
• Language: Spanish—will require a fluent Spanish-speaking team member or interpreter/translator

Please contact our Managing Attorney for Pro Bono Coordination, Jennifer Grishkin, at jennifer@amicacenter.org if you are interested in taking this case.

*Pseudonyms are used to protect privacy.