Court Grants Residency to Young Venezuelan Man
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.
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