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NEWS BYTES
Last week four men were indicted on charges of running a fraudulent document business specializing in documents for unauthorized immigrants. The raid on the operation, which was run out of a laundromat in Denver, resulted in the seizure of more than 1,200 fraudulent documents, including Social Security cards and green cards. According to the INS, the operation made about $10,000 a week, and the agency calls it one of their “bigger cases.”
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The Department of Labor faxback system for processing Labor Condition Applications has lately been experiencing significant problems. Heavier than anticipated volume, plus a program error have led to processing times of three weeks, in some cases longer. The Department is working to deal with the backlog, and has corrected the program error, so the system should be working correctly soon.
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The US Consulate at Ciudad Juarez recently provided this information. Third country nationals holding B visas will be expected to seek a change in visa status in their home country, not at Ciudad Juarez because officers at Ciudad Juarez are not sufficiently familiar with conditions in other countries to adjudicate the application. However, in light of the needs of the business community, the consulate will accept applications for a change of status from B to E, H or L visas, when the petitioning company is large and well established. Any doubts should first be reviewed with the consulate.
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Four men were arrested this weekend outside of Los Angeles on charges of manufacturing fraudulent immigration documents. Police seized 1,700 blank green cards and other documents with an estimated value of more than $50,000.
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One effect of the current level of immigration is the growth in foreign language newspapers. This trend is particularly noticeable in New York City. Even as traditional daily papers struggle to retain readers, foreign language papers in the city boast growing readership, with new papers entering the scene quite regularly. According to the Queens Borough Public Library, there are at least 72 papers in 30 languages. In many cases these papers provide much needed information about daily needs, such as banking services and grocery stores.
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Last week a discussion between US and Mexican immigration officials was held in Mexico City. They agreed that the two countries must work together to protect human rights and to develop a way to more effectively exchange workers. All of the parties agreed that efforts over the past six years have been in the right direction, and that these efforts should continue under the next administrations. New Mexican President Vicente Fox will be sworn in on December 1. US elections will be held on November 7 with the new President taking office in January.
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Patrick Roy, consistently one of the best goalies in the National Hockey League, could be deported if he is convicted of a misdemeanor he was charged with following a fight with his wife. Roy is a citizen of Canada. Roy is in the US on a P-1 visa, which is often used by professional athletic teams.
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A landlord in Berkeley and four of his family members this week entered guilty pleas to charges following an investigation into allegations that they smuggled young women from India for sex and cheap labor. Officials began investigating Lakireddy Bali Reddy last year after two girls suffered carbon monoxide poisoning in an apartment he owned. One of the girls died as a result. Reddy, the wealthiest landlord in Berkeley, was indicted last February on charges of smuggling and visa fraud. His son was also charged with visa fraud. Reddy could still face statutory rape charges. A sixth defendant, who posed as the father of the two girls who suffered carbon monoxide poisoning, was indicted in March. His case is still pending.
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The INS has dropped deportation proceedings against a Pennsylvania woman who had been seeking permanent residency through her marriage to a US citizen. Gabriella Dee, a native of Israel and citizen of Canada, was convicted in 1985 of smuggling her boyfriend from Israel into the US. She spent one day in jail and paid a $25 fine. By the time she applied for permanent residency in 1996, her offense had become an aggravated felony, and the INS moved to deport her. In 1998 an Immigration Judge entered a deportation order. A large part of the reason Dee has been allowed to remain in the US was the work on her behalf by Rep. Pat Toomey (R-PA). He spent two years convincing INS officials that the 1996 law was never intended to be applied in such a situation. Under their final agreement, the INS will seek to have deportation proceedings against Dee terminated. An Immigration Judge must approve it.
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The INS has agreed to settle a lawsuit that challenged its practices of seizing vehicles. The case was filed in 1994 and covered more than 100,000 vehicles seized by the INS in its Western Region between 1989 and 1999. The vehicles were seized following INS claims that the owners were using them to smuggle aliens into the US. The suit alleged that the INS did not have probable cause for the seizure, failed to properly explain the reason for the seizure, and did not give those whose cars were seized an adequate opportunity to respond to the charges of smuggling. In 1997 the Ninth Circuit upheld most of the plaintiff’s claims, prompting the INS to enter settlement talks. Under the settlement, which must be approved by a judge at a hearing in November, the INS will revise notices given to car owners suspected of smuggling, adopt uniform guidelines on fines, train officers on when probable cause for a seizure exists, provide a written decision and give owners an opportunity to seek reconsideration of fines levied. People whose car was seized during the 10-year period will be able to seek reconsideration of the fine or forfeiture order. More information on the terms of the settlement and to whom it applies can be found at the website of the law firm representing the plaintiffs, Gibbs, Houston, Pauw at http://www.ghp-law.net.
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This week the 12th annual conference of the Haitian Studies Association met in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. One of the goals of the meeting is to work to change the image of Haitians in the US. The dominant picture of Haitians in the US as an illiterate, uncultured people is far from the truth. There will be presentations by researchers from Harvard, the University of Massachusetts, Notre Dame and the University of Chicago, among others, designed to help local educators understand Haitian children and thus be able to better educate them.
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Ryan Wagner, the teenager who has been charged in the vicious beating of two Mexican workers in Farmingville, New York, says now that he was attacked first and fought back in self-defense. Wagner said in an interview that after his friend, who has not been taken into custody yet, initiated the attack, one of the Mexicans hit him, after which Wagner pulled out a knife and stabbed him. His statements are not supported by either police statements or the statements of the two men who were beaten. He has been charged with attempted murder and aggravated assault and faces up to 50 years in prison if convicted. Wagner has been linked to white supremacist organizations, and has three swastika tattoos. He says that he has since abandoned his racist views, and blames his role in the incident on drug and alcohol use.
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A few weeks ago we had a story about the claims of abuse of women at the Krome Detention Center in Miami documented in a report by the Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children. The report is now available online. The report is available in both PDF format http://www.theirc.org/wcrwc/reports/womenscommission-krome-10.00.PDF and HTML format http://www.theirc.org/wcrwc/reports/wc_krome_10.00.html.
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