O. Bella Bjornstad

Immigrant Justice Corps Fellow

Bella joined NMILC in January of 2023 as an extern and recently completed an Equal Justice Works Summer Fellowship. She is currently an intern on the Asylum, Detention, and Housing team where she delivers in-person legal presentations to detained asylum seekers at Torrance County Detention Facility and Cibola County Correctional Center and, under the supervision of Managing Attorney Sophia Genovese, represents detained asylum seekers in requests for release, reinterview, and reconsideration. She also supports systemic advocacy efforts through data collection and assists pro se asylum seekers in filing their asylum and employment authorization applications. Bella is a third-year law student and the University of New Mexico.