Sofia last entered the United States with her husband Carlos in 1993.   The couple crossed the U.S.-Mexican border at an international bridge which had an immigration checkpoint.   Sofia had crossed the border on countless occasions in her life using a border crossing card that she had ever since she was a little girl growing up near the Mexican border.    The couple casually walked across the bridge and a Customs and Border Patrol officer waved them into the United States, but did not physically inspect their documentation or record their entry.   

Nearly two decades later, the couple’s son, who was born a U.S. citizen in Florida, turned 21 years old and filed an I-130 family petition so that his mother and father could become residents.   We attended the mother’s residency interview at the Orlando Field Office where she recounted to the USCIS officer the story of her crossing the Mexican border at the border patrol checkpoint.   We presented a legal argument explaining why her manner of entry was considered legal for the purposes of obtaining her residency.   USCIS agreed with our analysis and approved her case, granting her lawful permanent resident status.

Roberto came to the United States from Venezuela when he was five years old on a tourist visa with his family.  He grew up in Orlando, Florida like any other little boy, with one exception:   Roberto had no legal immigration status.   When Roberto was 25 years old, he was arrested for driving without a license and the police claimed to have found drugs in his car during the subsequent search; they charged him with drug possession.   Scared and without money to hire a private lawyer, Roberto plead guilty to the drug charges.  After his criminal court proceedings, he was transferred to an immigration detention center to begin deportation proceedings.

 Roberto’s family called our office to see if there was anything we could do to help get Roberto out of detention.  His mother was suffering from kidney failure and Roberto was a potential transplant donor. We believed we could make a strong argument that he merited Cancellation of Removal at his removal proceedings.  Through creative lawyer and a highly technical legal argument, our office was able to get Roberto released from detention on bond.   A few months later, Roberto’s drug conviction was vacated by the state prosecutors when lab test results demonstrated without a doubt the substance found in Roberto’s car was not drugs at all.   While awaiting his removal proceedings, Roberto married his girlfriend Teresa, changing the strategy of the case.   Our office filed a marriage petition for Roberto and his wife immediately.   Once the marriage petition was approved, we filed an application for Roberto’s residency status with the judge.   Because Roberto’s conviction had been vacated and he entered the U.S. legally, he was able to easily obtain his residency in court at his individual hearing.   After being in the U.S. for 22 years without legal status, Roberto finally earned a right to live permanently in the country that has been his home since he was five years old.

Congratulations to Sacha Josephau for the approval of his O-1 visa as an alien of extraordinary ability.  Sacha is a French hairstylist and makeup artist who has provided hair and makeup services for the world renowned Paris Opera Ballet and the cover of Vogue Magazine, one of the world’s most popular fashion publications.  Sacha has also provided his hair and makeup services to actors in acclaimed movies and television series seen all around the globe.  Sacha performs his extraordinary services at the Jean Claude Biguine salon at 777 Brickell Avenue.

Our office recently attended a very special naturalization interview with our client, Liliana, a long-time permanent resident of the United States.    Liliana has been a resident of the U.S. since 1980, but had never filed for citizenship because she had been living abroad most of the time since becoming a resident.   Her husband has been employed overseas as an engineer for an American company who works in conjunction with the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers on a variety of projects in Honduras.    The couple has been residing in Honduras for more than 25 years.   

Our office assisted Liliana in filing an application for naturalization under Section 319(b) of the Immigration & Nationality Act.   This provision waives the physical presence and continuous residence requirements for residents who live with a spouse who is employed abroad by the U.S. government or a U.S. company who engages in the development of foreign trade and commerce.    Liliana’s case fit squarely within this provision.  On the day of her naturalization interview, after Liliana passed her English and Civics examinations, we were surprised when a supervisor appeared and told us he would administer the citizenship oath and make Liliana a U.S. citizen that very same day.   This was unusual as naturalization applicants generally must return on a different day to attend the naturalization oath ceremony, oftentimes weeks or months after the interview.    In contrast, this special provision of law requires that USCIS administer the citizenship oath immediately after the interview and examination.   The supervisor brought Liliana back to his office and we witnessed as she pledged her oath of allegiance to our country and walked out with her certificate of naturalization in hand.   It was truly an amazing experience to be a part of!

In Absentia Deportation Order Re-Opened and Case Terminated for Residency Application

Maria first came to the United States from Peru in 1991, fleeing persecution at the hands of the notorious Peruvian guerrilla group, the Shining Path.    Both of her sisters also fled Peru around the same time, fearing for their lives at the hands of rebel forces.    Maria timely filed an application for political asylum and attended many court hearings and interviews over the course of a decade pursuing her asylum application.   In the meantime, one of Maria’s sisters was granted asylum based on factual circumstances similar to her own.  

In 2004, Maria was ordered deported in her absence for failing to attend her final hearing in front of the immigration judge.   Maria had previously attended seven other immigration hearings without fail.   Unfortunately, the date of final hearing was re-set by the judge with notice served upon Maria’s former attorney only.   The attorney failed to notify Maria of the change in date and neither Maria nor her prior attorney appeared at the hearing and the immigration judge ordered her deported in her absence.   Maria and her prior attorney immediately attempted to re-open her case, but to no avail.   About one year later, Maria’s former attorney was disbarred from the Florida Bar for her systematic poor performance and neglect of her clients’ cases.   

In 2010, Maria came to our office to seek help in legalizing her immigration status, six years after being ordered deported and after spending tens of thousands of dollars with other immigration attorneys trying to rectify her case.   Fortunately, her sister who had won asylum nearly 20 years ago had become a U.S. citizen and filed a family petition for Maria which was approved.   After waiting ten years for a visa number to become available as the sister of a U.S. citizen, Maria was finally eligible to become a resident.   The only thing stopping her from obtaining her residency was her prior order of deportation.  

After reviewing Maria’s file, our office determined that it would be possible to file a Motion to Reopen her deportation proceedings due to the fact that Maria did not have proper notice of the date of her final court hearing at the time she was ordered deported.   We knew it would be a long shot, but it was one of the only chances Maria had of becoming a resident in the U.S. without having to depart to Peru.

A few months after filing the motion, we received an order from the immigration judge notifying us that he was granting Maria’s Motion to Reopen.   Maria was then scheduled for a Master Calendar Hearing this June.    At the Master Calendar Hearing, we convinced the judge and the government attorney to agree to terminate Maria’s case to allow her to file her residency application directly with USCIS.  

Maria no longer has an order of deportation against her and she is not in deportation proceedings.    Maria is free to file her residency application like any other applicant.   Her family is ecstatic that after 20 years of being in the United States, Maria finally has the opportunity to become a resident.   Maria has devoted her life in the United States to helping special needs children in her work as a special education teacher and coach for the Special Olympics, and we cannot think of a better ending for a more deserving person.   Congratulations to Maria and her family!

Tito’s mother brought him to the United States from Canada in 1973 when he was 9 years old following the death of his father.  Since then, Tito has been living in the United States for more than 38 years without any lawful immigration status.  Tito is married to a U.S. citizen, has three U.S. citizen children, and two U.S. citizen grandchildren. America has been his home for nearly 40 years. In 2006, Tito filed a residency application based on his marriage to his U.S. citizen wife.  In 2009, he and his wife appeared at the Orlando Field Office for Tito’s residency interview without attorney representation. The USCIS officer acted very aggressively towards Tito and his wife, interrogating them about various issues. After the interview, USCIS issued denied alleging that Tito had falsely claimed to be a U.S. citizen when applying for social security number, driver’s license, firearm’s license, and plumbing license. Tito and his wife had consulted with many immigration attorneys in Central Florida before being referred to our office. All of the attorneys he met with told him that his case had no hope because a false claim to U.S. citizenship acts as a permanent bar to obtaining lawful permanent resident status. After reviewing the facts of Tito’s case, we told him that would be happy to help him fight the allegations against him. We quickly filed a Motion to Reopen his case with USCIS. In the motion, we were able to demonstrate through documentary evidence that Tito had not claimed U.S. citizenship on his firearms and plumbing license and that if there were any claims to citizenship, he would have made them long before the law outlawing false claims came into effect. USCIS granted the Motion to Reopen and scheduled Tito for another interview at the Orlando Field Office. We attended this second interview with Tito and felt confident that Tito would be granted his residency and the whole ordeal would end for him and his wife. A short while later, our office received a letter denying Tito’s residency application again; this time for allegedly making a false claim to U.S. citizenship on a voter’s registration application which unknowingly signed while completing a change of address request for his driver’s license at the DMV. After the second denial, USCIS referred Tito’s case to the Immigration Court for deportation proceedings. Despite the disappointment, we remained confident that we could win the case in front of the immigration judge. At Tito’s court proceedings, we denied the charges against him and requested that a hearing be held where the government would need to demonstrate that it had sufficient evidence to prove the charges filed against Tito. Tito was scheduled for an Individual Hearing where it would be decided not only whether he was deportable for making the false claim to U.S. citizenship, but also whether or not he would be eligible to become a permanent resident. We practiced Tito’s testimony on several occasions and prepared him for rigorous questioning by the government’s attorney. Nearly 30 of Tito’s family and friends came to the Immigration Court to support Tito on the day of his Individual Hearing. The government attorney felt extremely confident that he had enough evidence to deport Tito. Tito was put on the witness stand and testified to the fact that he did not know he was signing a voter’s registration card at the DMV; that he had destroyed the voter’s card when he received it in the mail because he knew he was not a U.S. citizen; and that he had never once voted despite being registered. At the end of Tito’s testimony, the Immigration Judge found that the government did not have enough evidence to prove the charge against Tito. Next, we proved to the judge that Tito was immediately eligible to become a lawful permanent resident. After 38 years in this country, we are happy to say the Immigration Judge granted Tito’s residency in court that day! Everyone in the courtroom was ecstatic about the decision and the nightmare that began five years ago for Tito and his wife finally came to a dramatic end. We send our sincerest congratulations to Tito and his family!.

Issue:        Angel entered the United States from Mexico in 1994 as a lawful permanent resident. In 1998, he suffered a traumatic brain injury in a work-related accident.  He has been permanently disabled since that time. The traumatic brain injury caused Angel to experience certain personality changes, including behavioral excesses and impulsivity. At one point, these behaviors led to an altercation with his girlfriend and a domestic violence conviction. The conviction led to detention and removal proceedings.

Solution:      We represented Angel before the immigration court both at the Krome Detention Center, before he was released, and at the court in downtown Miami.  We first obtained his release from detention, with a bond,  over the government attorney’s objection.   We did this by assuring the immigration judge that we would coordinate efforts to treat our client’s mental health issues. We had our client attend counseling and undergo several psychological evaluations with a view to obtaining treatment recommendations.  We made sure he saw a doctor who would evaluate the medications he as taking for appropriateness. To appease the government attorneys, we also eventually agreed, with our client’s consent, to have him placed in the supervised release program.

We attended two individual hearings to argue for his eligibility for cancellation of removal. We provided evidence that Angel would have been unable to live alone in Mexico.   He is severely disabled and unable to work.  He lives with his parents here in South Florida. All of his family members, including his five brothers and sisters live in South Florida.   He does not have any close relatives in Mexico.   He requires frequent medical attention and therapy.   Finally, at a second hearing the immigration judge granted Angel’s application for cancellation of removal and thereby preserved his resident status.

Removal proceedings may have been the best thing that has happened to Angel as we were able to help him address certain mental health issues that, to date, had gone untreated. We wish him the best of luck as he continues his recovery.

Issue:  Angel, a Venezuelan national, fled Venezuela in 2005 seeking political asylum in the United States.   In June of 2008, Angel came to our office after his application for political asylum had been denied by the Immigration Judge and again denied by the Board of Immigration Appeals.   The denial of Angel’s asylum application had left him with a final order of deportation, barring him from obtaining resident status in the United States.  

Solution:    In August of 2008, Angel married his then-girlfriend, Ivon, a lawful permanent resident of the United States and a Cuban national.    In March 2009, our office assisted Angel in filing an application for permanent residency under the Cuban Adjustment Act as a spouse of a Cuban national.   However, because Angel had previously been ordered deported, he remained ineligible for his residency unless his case could be reopened with the Immigration Court and the final order of deportation removed from his file.   In April 2009, our office filed a Joint Motion to Reopen with the Office of Chief Counsel, the attorneys for the government, requesting that the government agree to reopening Angel’s case so that he could become a U.S. resident based on the marriage to his Cuban wife.    Despite repeated efforts from our office to obtain a decision from the government, Angel’s motion remained pending with the government attorneys’ office for an extended period of time.    In the meantime, Angel’s ex-wife and his 10 year old son were granted political asylum in the United States, furthering Angel’s desire to remain in the United States with his wife and family.   Finally, in December 2010, the government agreed to join in the motion to reopen Angel’s removal proceedings.   Shortly thereafter, the Immigration Judge granted the Joint Motion to Reopen and scheduled Angel for a Master Calendar Hearing in March of 2011.  

On March 17, 2011, we attended the Master Calendar Hearing with Angel and informed the Immigration Judge that Angel was immediately eligible for his residency under the Cuban Adjustment Act.   As Angel had been waiting more than two years for his residency, we requested to move forward with the case as expeditiously as possible.    The Immigration Judge provided us with an Individual Hearing date of March 23, 2011, only six days following the Master Calendar Hearing.   We are happy to announce that the Immigration Judge approved Angel’s application for permanent residency at the Individual Hearing.   After waiting nearly three years for his residency application to be approved, Angel has now become the newest lawful permanent resident of the United States.    Finally, after more nearly six years in this country and a long and winding journey through the immigration court process, Angel has obtained permanent legal status in the United States.   Congratulations to Angel and his family!

This month USCIS approved the extension of Oriano Galloni’s O-1 visa petition as a Sculptor of extraordinary ability. We recently paid tribute to Oriano’s magnificent sculptures in our January 2011 Newsletter. USCIS has again recognized that Oriano continues to be one of the world’s leading marble sculptors. Galloni’s innovative sculptures, some of which reach heights of more than 17 feet tall, have earned the attention of world-class museums like the Guggenheim and the Whitney in New York City. Galloni was something of a prodigy, having started his artistic career when he was 8 years old. He graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Carrara in 1992, and shortly thereafter was invited to exhibit his work in the prestigious Gallery Bruschi in Florence Italy. It was the first time in the gallery’s history that it agreed to exhibit such a young artist. Since then, Galloni’s works have been displayed extensively in his native Italy, and in Germany, South Africa, London and the United States. To learn more about Oriano Galloni and his work please visit http://lorianogalloni.com.

Issue:

 Olga*, a Mexican National, came to our office with her U.S. citizen husband, Luis, after they had received a Notice to Appear at the Immigration Court for Olga’s deportation proceedings. Luis* had previously filed an I-130 marriage petition on behalf of his wife as well as an application to adjust her status to lawful permanent resident. Because they were not represented by an attorney, the couple was unaware that Olga was ineligible to adjust her status in the U.S. because she had entered the U.S. illegally in 1997 across the Mexican border. The immigration service approved the I-130 petition, but denied Olga’s residency application. A few months later, the immigration service put her in deportation proceedings.

Solution:

 Because Olga had resided continuously in the U.S. for more than ten years, had never been convicted of any crimes, and had qualifying relatives (her U.S. citizen husband and lawful permanent resident parents), she was eligible to apply for cancellation of removal.
Outcome:

Olga’s husband, Luis, has a great job working for the county government as a mechanic on emergency vehicles such as ambulances and fire trucks. Due to his wife’s potential deportation, Luis began to experience depression and a loss of concentration and attention at work – very dangerous for someone who works with heavy equipment and machinery. In addition, Luis was extremely worried about his wife returning to the rural region of San Luis Potosi, Mexico – her hometown – which is currently controlled by a powerful Mexican drug cartels. Olga also suffers from a painful reproductive disease which, if not treated properly, would lead to her infertility. As her husband 

Luis has dreamed of having children his whole life, we were able to show that the lack of proper medical care in Mexico for his wife would be a hardship to him if she became infertile. Lastly, Luis comes from a close-knit Puerto-Rican family; all of his immediate and extended family members were natural born U.S. citizens. Luis has never been apart from his family in the U.S. and has no ties to Mexico; in fact, he has never been there. The judge found that our office established exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to Luis in the event of Olga’s deportation when taking into account the combined effect of all the hardship he would suffer. We are happy to announce that Olga was granted her lawful permanent residency at the hearing and she and her husband are now planning on turning some of their dreams into reality. They will soon be purchasing their first home and starting a family together. Congratulations Luis and Olga!

*Please note that client’s names have been changed for their confidentiality