Man Posing As Immigration Agent Arrested After Assaulting Woman And Threatening Her Family

by Arturo R. Rios on April 6, 2012

In yet another incident illustrating the dangers posed to immigrants by opportunistic fraudsters, a man in Washington state who posed as an immigration agent was arrested recently and charged with rape and robbery. Jose Antonio Haughton, who had convinced one of his victims that he was an immigration agent, was arrested and accused of extorting several people. He was also charged with sexually assaulting a woman after threating to kill her family or have them deported.

“The defendant has demonstrated a pattern of harassing … the particularly vulnerable group of undocumented immigrants, pressuring them to give him sometimes thousands of dollars,” Senior Deputy Prosecutor Richard Anderson said to the court in regards to Haughton. “He would frequently resort to threats of harm to people’s families to ensure compliance with his demands.” [click to continue…]

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Derivative Non-Immigrant T And U Visas For Family Members Of Abuse Victims

by Arturo R. Rios on April 5, 2012

We recently wrote an article on the availability of T and U visas for immigrant victims of crimes such as human trafficking, abuse, or domestic violence. Such victims can also petition U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on behalf of overseas family members for derivative T and U non-immigrant status so that they can be together in the United States.

According to USCIS, “before family members of principal T or U visa holders can enter the United States, they must first undergo processing with the U.S. Department of State (DOS) at a U.S. Embassy or Consulate to obtain a T or U visa abroad. This is known as consular processing. USCIS will decide on the basis of the application or petition filed by the principal T or U nonimmigrant status holder whether an overseas family member qualifies for derivative T or U nonimmigrant status. DOS will then separately determine that family member’s eligibility to receive a visa in order to enter the United States.” [click to continue…]

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Two Different Rules For Derivative U.S. Citizenship For Children

April 4, 2012

USCIS defines derivative citizenship as “citizenship conveyed to children through the naturalization of parents or, under certain circumstances, to foreign-born children adopted by U.S. citizen parents, provided certain conditions are met.” In this article we’ll briefly discuss derivative citizenship for children of parents who have been naturalized. There are two different sets of rules for such derivative citizenship: one set of rules applies to children who were not yet 18 years old on February 27, 2001, and the other set of rules applies to children who were 18 or over on February 27, 2001.

Under the rules that apply to children who were not yet 18 on February 27, 2011, a child derives citizenship if they meet the following conditions: Read more on Two Different Rules For Derivative U.S. Citizenship For Children…

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Immigration Fraud News: New York Lawyer Pleads Guilty In Massive Scam

April 3, 2012

A former lawyer-turned-rabbi in New York recently pleaded guilty to conducting what prosecutors say could be the largest immigration fraud scheme in U.S. history. Earl Seth David, also known as Rabbi Avraham David, operated the scheme out of his Manhattan law firm for 13 years, charging immigrant clients huge fees, sometimes as high as $30,000. His firm made millions through the fees, for which he applied for and obtained thousands of Department of Labor (DOL) certifications for undocumented immigrants based upon false claims that U.S. employers had “sponsored” the immigrants for employment.

U.S. law allows an immigrant to petition for legal status if he or she has obtained a certification from DOL certifying that a U.S. employer wishes to employ, or “sponsor,” them.  An immigrant who obtains DOL certification can then use it to petition the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to obtain legal status in the United States. Read more on Immigration Fraud News: New York Lawyer Pleads Guilty In Massive Scam…

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U.S. Supreme Court Accepts Immigrant’s Marijuana Deportation Appeal

April 2, 2012

The U.S. Supreme Court recently accepted a case that will determine if a state marijuana conviction constitutes a deportable offense under federal law. The case involves the conviction of Adrian Moncrieffe, a Jamaican immigrant and permanent resident who pleaded guilty in Georgia in 2008 to possession of a small amount of marijuana with intent to distribute. The federal government sought to have Moncrieffe deported on the grounds that he had committed the “aggravated felony” of “drug trafficking.” An immigration judge ruled that Moncrieffe could be deported because his aggravated felony conviction in Georgia equated to a federal felony, which the Fifth Circuit later upheld.

At issue is Moncrieffe’s defense that his conviction under Georgia law does not equate to an aggravated felony under federal law, per the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), and that he is therefore not deportable. Read more on U.S. Supreme Court Accepts Immigrant’s Marijuana Deportation Appeal…

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