RIAC General Information
ILS Regional Immigration Assistance Centers
The Sixth Amendment requires defense counsel to provide clients with specific advice about clear immigration consequences of a plea bargain. See Padilla v Kentucky, 599 US 386 (2010). The failure of counsel to meet that constitutional duty can have profound consequences for noncitizen clients. But giving competent advice requires knowledge of immigration laws that are complex and constantly in flux, and many defender offices and ACPs cannot hire in-house experts. Fortunately, free expert advice is available to defenders.
To ensure that counsel has access to the support needed to provide effective assistance to noncitizens, in 2016, ILS created a statewide network of Regional Immigration Assistance Centers (RIACs or Centers), staffed by attorneys with extensive expertise in immigration law. This innovative program was the first of its kind in the nation. In 2020, ILS initiated a new three-year contract period, offering grants to continue to fully fund the RIACs.
The extensive services provided by RIAC attorneys include immigration advisals in criminal, appellate, and post-conviction matters, as well as in Family Court cases carrying potential immigration consequences. The Centers also offer extensive trainings to counsel and courts.
In 2020, the Centers collectively responded to more than 2,000 requests for assistance. Defense counsel and the RIACs joined forces to protect noncitizens because they understand that the consequences of a plea bargain regarding even a minor offense may mean the difference between the client maintaining a life in the United States or being permanently separated from family and banished from a country long considered home. Often a RIAC can help counsel persuade a prosecutor to use an alternative plea deal providing for a conviction of the same level for the same jail time, while avoiding an inequitable penalty of deportation or inadmissibility. To find the Center serving your county, please see the information below.
Our Statewide Network
Region 1: Western NY
Counties:
Allegany, Cattaraugus, Cayuga, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Ontario, Orleans, Seneca, Steuben, Wayne, Wyoming, Yates.
Supervising Attorney:
Sophie Feal
Legal Aid Bureau of Buffalo
290 Main Street, Suite 400
Buffalo, NY 14202
(716) 853-9555 ext. 269
Links:
RIAC Website
https://legalaidbuffalo.org/regional-immigration-assistance-center
RIAC Brochure
Western NY - Legal Aid Bureau Buffalo/Ontario
RIAC Recent Newsletters & Articles
Western NY Newsletter - January 2021
Western NY Newsletter - February 2021
Western NY Newsletter - March 2021
Western NY Newsletter - July 2021
Western NY Newsletter - August 2021
Western NY Newsletter - September 2021
Western NY Newsletter - October 2021
Western NY Newsletter - November 2021
Western NY Newsletter - December 2021
Western NY Newsletter - January 2022
Western NY Newsletter - February 2022
Western NY Newsletter - March 2022
Western NY Newsletter - April 2022
Western NY Newsletter - May 2022
Western NY Newsletter - July 2022
Western NY Newsletter - August 2022
Western NY Newsletter - September 2022
Western NY Newsletter - November 2022
Western NY Newsletter - December 2022
Western NY Newsletter - January 2023
Western NY Newsletter - February 2023
Western NY Newsletter - March 2023
Western NY Newsletter - April 2023
Western NY Newsletter - May 2023
Western NY Newsletter - June 2023
Western NY Newsletter - July 2023
Western NY Newsletter - August 2023
Western NY Newsletter - September 2023
Western NY Newsletter - October 2023
Western NY Newsletter - November 2023
Western NY Newsletter - December 2023
Western NY Newsletter - January 2024
Western NY Newsletter - February 2024
Western NY Newsletter - April 2024
Western NY Newsletter - May 2024
Western NY Newsletter - June 2024
Western NY Newsletter - September 2024
Western NY Newsletter - October 2024
Western NY Newsletter - November 2024
Western NY Newsletter - December 2024
Region 2: Central NY
Counties:
Broome, Chemung, Chenango, Cortland, Delaware, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Madison, Oneida, Onondaga, Oswego, Otsego, Schuyler, Tioga, Tompkins.
Immigration Law Director:
Sharon L. Ames
109 South Warren Street, Suite 220
Syracuse, NY 13202
(315)356-5794
Links:
RIAC Brochure
RIAC Intake Form
RIAC Recent Newsletters
Central NY Newsletter - January 2021
Central NY Newsletter - February 2021
Central NY Newsletter - March 2021
Central NY Newsletter - April 2021
Central NY Newsletter - May 2021
Central NY Newsletter - June 2021
Central NY Newsletter - September 2021
Central NY Newsletter - October 2021
Central NY Newsletter - November 2021
Central NY Newsletter - December 2021
Region 3: Northern NY
Counties:
Albany, Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Montgomery, Rensselaer, St. Lawrence, Saratoga, Schenectady, Schoharie, Warren, Washington.
Supervising Attorney:
Evelyn A. Kinnah, Esq.
112 State Street, Suite 900
Albany, NY 12207
(518) 447-4890
Evelyn.kinnah@albanycountyny.gov
Links:
RIAC Website
https://www.albanycounty.com/government/immigration-services
RIAC Brochure
RIAC Intake Form
Region 4: Hudson Valley
Counties:
Columbia, Dutchess, Greene, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster, Westchester.
Supervising Attorney
Robert Horne
Legal Aid Society of Westchester County
50 Grand Street
White Plains, NY 10601
(914) 286-3408
Links:
RIAC Website
https://www.hudsonvalleyriac.com
RIAC Brochure
Hudson Valley - Westchester County
RIAC Intake Form
https://www.hudsonvalleyriac.com/intake-form
Region 5: NYC
Counties:
Bronx, Kings, NY, Queens, Richmond.
Supervising Attorney:
Marie Mark
Immigrant Defense Project
Padilla Support Center
40 West 39th Street, 5th Floor
New York, NY 10018
(212) 725-6422
Links:
RIAC Website
https://www.immigrantdefenseproject.org/what-we-do/padilla-support-center/
RIAC Brochure
New York City - Immigrant Defense Project
RIAC Intake Forms
https://www.immigrantdefenseproject.org/what-we-do/legal-advice/lawline-web-form/
Region 6: Long Island
Counties:
Nassau and Suffolk.
Supervising Attorneys:
Donna Zak
Legal Aid Society of Nassau County
40 Main Street, 3rd Floor
Hempstead, NY 11550
(929) 279-3628
Christina Gaudio
Legal Aid Society of Suffolk County
Cohalan Court Complex
400 Carleton Drive, 4th Floor
Central Islip, NY 11722x
(631) 853-5216
Links:
RIAC Website
http://www.longislandriac.com/
RIAC Brochure and Intake Forms
http://www.longislandriac.com/resources.html
RIAC Newsletter
http://www.longislandriac.com/newsletter.html