NEW YORK, NY November 02, 2009 —A group of attorneys has determined that more than a third of immigration detainees housed in a lower Manhattan facility have a reasonable chance of avoiding deportation. In a report released today the City Bar Justice Center says, the immigrants just need lawyers. WNYC's Marianne McCune has more.

REPORTER: Last year, nearly 100 immigrants detained at a private facility on Varick Street sent a letter begging for help from the not for profit arm of the New York City Bar Association. So the City Bar Justice Center began holding weekly law clinics there to help those with valid cases win the right to stay. And the attorneys discovered that immigration judges are much less likely to deport immigrants with legal representation. Unlike the United States criminal justice system, the Department of Homeland Security does not guarantee lawyers for detained immigrants. So most go to immigration court without one. The Bar Association says, as the Obama administration is revamping detention and removal policies, providing counsel for immigrants would benefit everyone: immigrants and the government - by making the process more efficient. For WNYC, I'm Marianne McCune.

The Department of Homeland Security has not responded to WNYC’s request for comment.

You can read the bar's full report here. .