A Handbook for New Advocates Representing Clients Detained in Adelanto
April 14, 2026
Immigration courts are facing a severe crisis of representation. Most
Court Watcher Dashboard
Session Sheets
Criminal Court Session Guides
Immigration Court Session Guides
Juvenile Court Session Guide:
Upload Your Observations
Getting Started
STEP 1: Choose a Date
Find upcoming court watching dates that are submitted by community members on our calendar. You may also attend courts of your choosing without having to wait for a calendar invite.
STEP 2: Print a Session Sheet
We recommend saving these Session Sheets as a guide, because you will likely view many cases in just a few hours (criminal court). Take the appropriate session sheets for the type of court you’ll be visiting, and record your notes in a notebook. The session sheets correspond to the questions in the online forms where you will upload your notes after court watching. It’s ok if you don’t get every detail but please get as much as you’re able, as it supports our data reporting.
STEP 3: Upload Session Info
Use your notes from court to fill out the online form that corresponds to the type of court(s) you watched. Please note: This form is easiest to use on a desktop device.
STEP 4: Connect!
Join our Criminal Court or Immigration Court Signal Chats to chat and coordinate with CWLA staff and other Court Watchers in the LA area!
Criminal Court Signal Chat
Immigration Signal Chat
Calendar
You may attend courts at any time as your own schedule allows. The following are group court watching events and community member requests for court watchers at a specific location.
Training Resources
View & Download Manuals
View & Download Orientation Slides
These slides are used in and meant to accompany the video trainings.
Criminal Court Training Slides
Immigration Court Training Slides
Videos: Orientation & Instructional
Training Videos
55:32
1:35:57
2:03
3:52
Articles & Reports
Read More »
NEW RELEASE
Summer 2026 Report
Every data point in this report represents a person: someone’s parent, child, sibling, or neighbor.
For a full year, trained community volunteers sat in Los Angeles County courtrooms and documented what actually happens to people navigating the pretrial system. The result is 140 closed cases analyzed, dozens of judges evaluated, and a clear picture of how bail, delay, and discretion combine to keep people detained before they’ve ever been convicted of anything.
My Account
Connect with our team
- Contact our team – via web form
- Connect on Signal using the QR codes below.
Criminal Court
Immigration Court
You don’t have to wait for a group court watching day to watch LA courtrooms.
Ready to observe at a courthouse near you? Check out this list of LA County courts. Find the closest criminal court (they’re marked with “CRM” on each courthouse on the LA Courthouses list) and start watching! You can also watch at any of the LA County Arraignment courts in the spreadsheet link provided.
Visit LACourt.org/courthouse at the button below to view courthouses.
Visit our Google Spreadsheet to find arraignment courts and judges.