“V” is for Victory! Terezakis Firm Wins for July 2017

Withdrawal of Aggravated Felony Charge After 12 Years & 3 Appeals:

To win deportation-removal cases, you must be tenacious; have a legal theory supported by the law, and keep fighting, even if you lose initially. Our client, a long term lawful permanent resident was charged with being removable for having been convicted of an aggravated felony.  Unfortunately, the elements of the aggravated felony he was charged with were not defined under the immigration law. During the 12 years we litigated his case, he was ordered deported 3 times, and 3 times we appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals: each time, due to errors by the court, his case was remanded. Finally, in a different case, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision which adopted the same arguments we had raised from the outset. Using that new precedent, we filed a fourth motion to terminate, and after 12 years the government finally conceded we were correct and withdrew the aggravated felony charge. When we shared the news with my client and his wife, he literally cried with joy.

GRANT OF N.A.C.A.R.A. RELIEF UNDER HEIGHTENED STANDARD

As a result of the settlement in the American Baptist Church class action lawsuit, Congress passed the Nicaraguan and Central American Relief Act, which sought to remedy I.N.S.’s history of unfairly denying Central American’s asylum claims. The N.A.C.A.R.A. made it easier for members of this class to gain status as lawful permanent residents, and also allowed members of the class with certain criminal convictions to still become residents, provided they were able to demonstrate a heightened standard of hardship, and to show ten years of good moral character.  After a successful appeal; the passage of the ten years necessary to demonstrate his good moral character and rehabilitation; we won his hearing and he was granted status as a lawful permanent resident.

TWO MOTIONS TO RE-OPEN DEPORTATION ORDERS GRANTED

Our client, a long term lawful permanent resident, was rendered deportable as the result of his conviction for possessing a controlled substance.  His previous attorney was relieved by the Court, and when he failed to appear in Court for his scheduled hearing, he was ordered deported in absentia, i.e., in his absence.  We were retained after he was picked up by I.C.E., and when his physical removal was imminent.  We were able to demonstrate, with medical records, that the client’s father had been hospitalized following surgery on the hearing date, and the notice of the removal order was defective.  We convinced the Judge to vacate the deportation order, and then we were able to have his proceedings terminated based upon a new decision by the 2nd Circuit regarding the government’s burden of proof in controlled substance cases.

Motion to Reopen In Absentia Deportation Order Granted: Undiagnosed Mental Illness

Negotiating the intricacies of the deportation-removal process is extremely difficult for most immigrants, however, undiagnosed mental illness can make it virtually impossible. Our client, a Salvadoran national, was taken into custody shortly after entering the U.S. without inspection at the Texas-Mexico border. He was placed into custody, and promptly exhibited classic symptoms of paranoia and schizophrenia, including hallucinations and fearful behavior. After being released from custody, his mental condition continued to deteriorate; he missed his hearing in the Immigration Court and was ordered deported-removed. After years of suffering, and several hospitalizations, his condition was diagnosed and he was stabilized through medication.

We obtained, summarized, and presented his medical records demonstrating that his mental illness prevented him from appearing for his removal hearing. We convinced D.H.S. to consent to our motion to reopen his deportation order. On November 22, 2016, an Immigration Judge granted our motion to reopen the deportation order, and also terminated the proceedings against our client. For the first time in 18 years, our client is free of the fear of deportation and we are in the process of legalizing his immigration status. Meticulous preparation, including obtaining and reviewing the records of our client’s mental health treatment corroborated our defense of mental incapacity, and proved essential to winning this motion to reopen.

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Terezakis Law Firm
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Mineola, NY 11501
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