PSJD News Digest – March 27, 2026

March 27, 2026 at 2:00 pm · Filed under Public Interest Law News Bulletin

Sam Halpert, NALP Director of Public Service Initiatives

Photo: Harris and Ewing Collection, Library of Congress

Hi Interested Public,

Welcome to the end of another week. Big stories related to student loans and access to justice this week–particularly a noteworthy contempt order against San Francisco’s Public Defender as he refuses to represent more defendants than he believes his office is equipped to competently assist. Solidarity,

Sam

Editor’s Choice(s)

Federal Restructuring & Funding

Civil Society

  • Attorneys, activists seek special prosecutor to investigate ICE conduct (NBC 5 Chicago; 24 Mar 2026)

  • ‘All Hands on Deck’: Lawyers Mobilize to Help Free Detainees (Bloomberg Law; 24 Mar 2026)

    “Jenkins is among scores of attorneys answering the call. Organizations have sprung up to train lawyers in immigration habeas claims—an uncommon practice until recently—and public defenders are increasingly taking on cases that would have been rare for them only 12 months ago. There are more than 22,000 active habeas cases pending nationwide, according to habeasdockets.org, a volunteer-run tracking group. And organizations working to file these petitions have been overwhelmingly successful.”

  • U of A[Z] won’t stop ICE recruitment at law college as students complain (Tucson.com; 20 Mar 2026)

    “University of Arizona students and organizations are urging the law school to stop ICE recruitment, contending the agency’s actions in Minneapolis and elsewhere show disregard for the rule of law and constitutional provisions that law students are taught to uphold. But university officials responded that to bar ICE recruitment would be a political decision that violates free speech. The UA also says it doesn’t limit employment opportunities for students.”

Student Debt & Other Student Concerns

Conflicts Over Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility

Access to Justice

  • State Prosecutors Sue for Evidence in Shootings by Immigration Agents (New York Times; 24 Mar 2026)

  • Nebraska cases highlight legal morass from ICE detention (Nebraska Examiner; 25 Mar 2026)

    “[A] panel on the appeals court decided 2-1 that federal law doesn’t require a shot at bond for undocumented immigrants, even if they have lived inside the country for years without a criminal record….At issue is a federal policy issued last summer, and backed by the Board of Immigration Appeals, which called for mandatory detention of nearly all undocumented immigrants. It was a pivot from the longstanding practice allowing migrants who had lived years in the country a chance for bond. The mass detention policy fueled a legal morass, including a historic number of legal challenges nationwide and dozens filed on behalf of migrants in Nebraska.”