The Marin County Bar Association recently published a Nonprofit Profile featuring IANGEL and our work. The article, written by IANGEL legal extern Cali Crum, highlighted IANGEL’s dedication to supporting survivors of human trafficking through advocacy and vacatur law trainings.
Vacatur law is an essential tool for human trafficking survivors. As the profile explains, “Survivors of human trafficking often have criminal records as a result of being trafficked. Although their crimes may have been committed under duress from their traffickers, these survivors are burdened with convictions for crimes like drug possession and prostitution. Enacted in 2017, the California Vacatur Law allows survivors to have their criminal records sealed and convictions vacated for nonviolent crimes directly related to having been trafficked.”
“Because the California law provides relief only to those survivors who have the legal resources to pursue vacatur, IANGEL organizes trainings to maximize pro bono representation in post-conviction relief proceedings. Attorneys come away equipped with the basic tools to represent human trafficking survivors. Notably, IANGEL’s trainings address culturally-specific needs of many of the survivors as well as the effects of the trauma of being trafficked and how they affect representation.”
iangel nonprofit profile
IANGEL has held several trainings focusing on how attorneys can support survivors. In 2019, “Supporting Survivors of Human Trafficking: Attorney Training on California Vacatur Law (Update No. 1)” addressed the myriad of ways the criminal justice system can treat a victim of trafficking as a criminal, and in 2018 we trained a cohort of volunteer lawyers on California’s vacatur law. Our continuing legal education training has also covered immigration relief for trafficking survivors.
IANGEL also focuses on the effects of trauma on victims when reentering the legal system, as well as providing legal professionals with a toolkit for representing survivors with trauma. Earlier this year we held a webinar on “Protecting Survivors During COVID-19” that was later released as a training video. Trainings, whether they be on vacatur law or representing those suffering the effects of trauma, are an essential element of IANGEL’s work to support survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault, and trafficking through advocacy, education, and pro bono representation.