News & Updates

ACLU-PA filed a habeas corpus petition in August alleging that ICE was illegally detaining Mamadu Balde. Balde came to this country in 1999 from civil war-ravaged Sierra Leone. He was denied asylum and placed into removal proceedings. After he exhausted all appeals in...

ICE agents descended on 98 7-Eleven stores across the country Wednesday and arrested 21 people suspected of being in the United States illegally.

“To allow for an orderly transition, the effective date of the termination of TPS for El Salvador will be delayed 18 months to provide time for individuals with TPS to arrange for their departure or to seek an alternative lawful immigration status in the United States, if eligible.”

Unless halted by a higher court, the ruling will allow former DACA recipients who failed to renew by an October 5 deadline a chance to submit renewal applications and will also require the administration to allow renewal of applications expiring in the future.

After racial slurs were scrawled outside black students’ doors at the U.S. Air Force Academy’s preparatory school, Superintendent Lt. Gen. Jay Silveria gathered all 4,000 cadets in a hall Thursday so they could hear one message: Treat people with dignity and respect — or get out.

“Mr. Balde suffered real tragedy in his African homeland,” said Ashley Lively of JBM Legal, in a written statement. “This plainly unconstitutional detention is incredibly unfair to Mr. Balde, who has been a caring husband, devoted uncle, and productive employee for many years.”

“Jacqueline & her bilingual immigration team handle business immigration, family-based immigration, US citizenship, deportation, litigation, criminal defense, personal injury and asylum.”

“The U.S. government doesn’t want Mamadu Balde here and Sierra Leone says he is not one of their citizens”

Ashley actively works with a local LGBTQ center and has started a “Name Change” partnership that provides legal assistance to community members who wish to have their name changed to reflect their gender identity. She has also taken various cases pro bono or reduced fee for adjustment of status of refugees from a local resettlement center to help those in the most need. In response to the increase in Special Immigration Juvenile cases, Ashley works with her colleagues to file various petitions for children who qualify both in family court and with USCIS.

JBM Legal founder Jackie Martinez recently put together this presentation for the ACLU-Pittsburgh, PA Chapter’s Public Education Committee.