Because representing detainees is time consuming and costly, private lawyers often charge more than their normal rates, and nonprofit agencies cannot accept significant numbers of these cases. As a result, large numbers of detainees go to court unrepresented. The problem is compounded for immigrants detained in remote locations. No free legal services are currently available to detainees at Oakdale, and only one private immigration lawyer regularly goes to the facility. Detainees in remote county jails face the same dilemma.
Detainees also face problems with new procedures for conducting removal hearings.
In particular, removal hearings are increasingly held by videoconference. In these cases, the judge and the detainee observe and speak to each other through monitors in both the court and the detention center. The INS trial lawyer likewise remains in the courtroom. The detainee's counsel may appear in person or telephonically. The INS and Executive Office for Immigration Review view videoconferencing primarily as a tool to provide removal hearings for noncitizens who are serving criminal sentences, obviating the need to transfer them to an INS detention facility.