Two Wrongs — Making it Right

Season 07 Episode 02 Phyllis W. Cheng, Esq., has excelled at every stage of her career, and for nearly seven years was Director of the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, the largest state civil rights agency in the United States. In this episode, Phyllis tells the story of a deaf woman, in the United States illegally, in the process of self-deporting, arrested by ICE and detained in a city jail for five months. She was not given access to interpreters or provided with any means by which she could communicate, effectively cutting her off from her lawyers or family, and preventing her from communicating her need for medical procedures or basic needs. What were her rights in such circumstances? Did her immigration status impact her ability to recover compensation by way of legal action? How was Phyllis Cheng able to mediate a resolution of this matter?