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Deaf Mongolian asylum seeker denied sign language interpreter during ICE detention

Feb 1, 2025 · San Diego, CA, Mongolia

Deaf Mongolian asylum seeker denied sign language interpreter during ICE detention

Bayartulga Avirmed, a deaf Mongolian who fled persecution and entered the U.S. in February, was detained by ICE and subjected to deportation proceedings, mental health evaluations, and expedited removal without access to a Mongolian Sign Language interpreter despite communicating only in MSL. The government initially provided only an American Sign Language interpreter who could not understand him. U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw ruled that the government must provide an MSL interpreter, redo Avirmed's hearings and evaluations, and allow three hours of video communication with his attorney instead of CoreCivic's one-hour policy to accommodate interpretation time. Avirmed claims he faced beatings and discrimination in Mongolia due to his deafness, suffering a traumatic brain injury in 2020.

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