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Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, Inc.
www.trla.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
February 19, 2008
Contact: Jose Garza, Attorney
210.212.3701
jgarza@trla.org
Cynthia Martinez, Communications Director
512.374.2764
cmartinez@trla.org
Immigrant Minors Sue Over Assaults at Nixon Facility
SAN ANTONIO, Texas – Ten young men have filed a lawsuit against more than a dozen
individuals, private companies, and governmental agencies associated with the Away From
Home facility in Nixon, Texas for abuse suffered while in civil immigration detention.
Represented by Texas RioGrande Legal Aid (TRLA), the leading provider of legal aid in Texas,
the young men allege that they suffered repeated sexual, physical, and emotional abuse at the
Nixon facility between 2006 and early 2007. All of them were minors during their stay.
“These children came to the United States with the hope that they would be able to leave the
violence and poverty of their homelands and build better lives,” said TRLA attorney and
Director of Litigation Jose Garza. “Their trust was violated by the very people charged with
protecting them.”
The lawsuit alleges that the young men were repeatedly assaulted, denied counseling and
treatment, and retaliated against when they reported the abuse. The suit further alleges that both
state and federal officials were well aware of the abusive environment at the facility, but did not
take any action to help the situation. The young men, all originally from Central America, are
now living throughout the United States and are focused on recovering from the abuse.
Added Garza, “The physical and emotional scars they now carry could have been avoided. The
system should have protected them.”
Established in 1970, Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, Inc. (TRLA) is a nonprofit organization that
provides free civil legal services to low-income and disadvantaged clients in a 68-county service
area. TRLA’s mission is to promote the dignity, self-sufficiency, safety and stability of lowincome
Texas residents by providing high-quality legal assistance and related educational
services.
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