Massachusetts Immigration Lawyer Blog

Boston Immigration Lawyer News

Immigration Judge Francis L. Cramer has announced his retirement from Boston Immigration Court.  As an immigration lawyer who appeared frequently before Immigration Judge Cramer, I can say that he will be sorely missed.  He had a reputation for deciding deportation cases fairly and impartially.  And he always treated the immigration lawyers and parties with great respect, at times, a lighthearted humor.  His departure leaves a vacancy in the Boston Immigration Court bench that will be hard to fill.

Deportation Defense Tips for Boston Immigration Court

As a deportation defense lawyer who frequently appears in Immigration Court in Boston, here are some tips that should improve your experience at your immigration hearing:

1. Attend all hearing in Immigration Court (and all other courts). If you don't go to Immigration Court for your hearing, the Immigration Judge will give you an order of removal or deportation "in absentia" and a warrant will be issued for your arrest.
   
   
2. Arrive one hour before the time of your scheduled hearing. In Boston Immigration Court, for all master calendar hearings, a sign-in sheet is placed in the waiting room. I tell my immigration clients to arrive and sign in one hour before the scheduled time of the hearing. The sooner you sign in, the sooner your immigration case will be heard by the Immigration Judge. Plus, showing up early helps ensure that you will be in Immigration Court on time. Be careful: if you are late for your immigration hearing, you could be given an order of removal or deportation.
   
   
3. Dress appropriately. Boston Immigration Court is a serious place and you want to show the Immigration Judge and the Trial Attorney that you take the proceedings seriously. Don't wear a hat inside the courtroom. Take off your jacket. Wear what you would wear to a job interview or to a wedding. Inappropriate attire includes t-shirts with questionable slogans, spandex, stiletto heels, mini skirts, do-rags, shorts--you get the idea.
   
   
4. Be respectful to the Immigration Judge and to the Trial Attorney.  Maintain a calm, polite demeanor in Immigration Court--even if things don't go your way.  Think of it this way:  deportation is bad but deportation plus being arrested and held in contempt of court is worse.
   
   
5. Do NOT bring small children to Boston Immigration Court in the hopes that it will make the Immigration Judge more sympathetic to your immigration case. Keep in mind that hearings in Immigration Court take a long time and often require lots of waiting around. Combine the boredom of waiting with the stress of the immigration hearing and you have a not-so-great environment for young children.
   
   
6. Make sure the Immigration Court has your correct address on file If you change your address, notify the Immigration Judge immediately by filing Form EOIR-33 with the appropriate proof of service.
   
   
7. Turn off your cellphone in Boston Immigration Court. Off means completely off. Don't send text messages or put your cellphone on the vibrate or silent mode.
   
   
8. If you case is based on a pending I-130 immigrant petition based on marriage to a U.S. citizen, make sure that your U.S. citizen spouse comes with you to Immigration Court for all of your master calendar hearings.
   
   
9. Do not bring a non-lawyer to Immigration Court to speak on your behalf.  In Immigration Court in Boston at master calendar hearings, I sometimes see people attempt to have their U.S. citizen spouse or family member speak on their behalf.  The Immigration Judge will not permit this.  Only lawyers licensed to practice law in the United States are authorized to appear in Immigration Court as your representative.
   
   
10. Hire the best immigration attorney you can find. In Boston Immigration Court, the Department of Homeland Security will be seeking to deport you from the US. This immigration agency will be represented by lawyers who handle countless deportation cases each week. Unlike criminal proceedings, federal immigration laws don't provide you with the right to a free lawyer. But you do have the right to be represented at your own expense by the lawyer of your choosing. In Immigration Court, you are not required to be represented by an attorney. But, in my experience, I have rarely seen anyone successful represent himself or herself in Immigration Court. You need a lawyer with substantial experience in complicated immigration issues and deportation proceedings, preferably an attorney who practices immigration law exclusively. Meet with an immigration lawyer well before your hearing to come up with a strategy to protect you from deportation.

If you have questions about Immigration Court, please call my Boston immigration law firm at 617-722-0005.  We are ready to help you come up with a strategy to help protect you from deportation.

Lately, our Boston immigration law office has been inundated by a flood of people who have had their I-751, petition to remove conditions on permanent residency, denied by USCIS because they were not filed on time. As the I-751 denial letter points out, when the I-751 is denied, all the rights and privileges of permanent residency are terminated. In some cases, the I-751 denial letter is accompanied by a Notice to Appear in Immigration Court, which means that deportation or removal proceedings have been initiated.

If you filed your I-751 late and then got one of these denial letters from USCIS, what should you do? First, take a deep breath. Relax. Don't panic. And, by all means, don't pack your bags and leave the U.S.

Before discussing the solution, let me explain the problem. When you are given a conditional green card, you are required to file, together with your spouse, a petition requesting the removal of the conditional basis for your residency within the 90-day period immediately before the second anniversary of the date that you became a permanent resident. If you fail to file the I-751 by this deadline, the immigration regulations say that you will lose your green card status and be placed in deportation proceedings!

USCIS will permit you to file your I-751 late, after the expiration date on your 2-year conditional green card, but only if you include a written explanation of why you failed to file on time and a written request asking USCIS to excuse the late filing of the I-751. If you file your I-751 late and don't include this written request, USCIS will deny your I-751 on the grounds that it was untimely. This is what happens to many I-751 applicants who include the written explanation and request as required. And even if you include the written explanation and request, USCIS will only excuse a late-filed I-751 for "good cause."

So, with this background in mind, here are 3 possible remedies to the denial of an I-751 for failure to file in a timely manner.

1. Refile the I-751 but this time include the written request that USCIS excuse the late filing and explaining why you file the I-751 late. Since you must convince USCIS that your failure to file on time was for "good cause," you should include affidavits, medical records, financial documents--any and all documentation to support your argument.

2. Request that an Immigration Judge review the denial of your I-751. You can't petition Immigration Court to review the denial of your I-751 directly. You can only do ask Immigration Court for review of the I-751 denial if you are placed in deportation proceedings and required to appear before an Immigration Judge. Immigration Court doesn't have jurisdiction over all denied I-751s but this option is available in some instances. At a hearing in Immigration Court, the Immigration Service--not you--would have the burden of showing that basis for why it denied your I-751.

3. File a motion to reopen the decision by USCIS to deny your I-751.

Which of these options is best path to keeping your green card depends on the facts of your immigration case.  This is a decision best made in consultation with an immigration attorney with substantial experience handling family-based immigration cases and with a strong background in deportation defense.

If you need more help or advice on how to remove the conditions on your green card or if you need representation in Immigration Court, please call me at 617-722-005 and schedule a time to meet with me to discuss your immigration case.

I'm proud to announce that I've been re-appointed as a liaison to Boston's Immigration Court for the American Immigration Lawyers Association ("AILA") - New England Chapter. As a member of the Liaison Committee to the Executive Office of Immigration Review, I look forward to assisting my esteemed colleagues. 

In Boston, immigration lawyers and the Immigration Court have a tradition of warm relationship, for which we can thank the leadership of Court's Administrator Robert Halpin.  As a liaison, I'm happy to be able make a small contribution to this on-going comity.

The Immigration Court in Boston, Massachusetts will be closed August 3 - 7, 2009 while the Immigration Judges attend a conference. While the Court is closed, no hearings will be conducted, except emergency bonds, which will be heard telephonically by Immigration Judges who are not Boston Immigration Judges. The Immigration Court is in the process of rescheduling all hearings scheduled for that week.

Although the Immigration Court will be closed, I'll be hard at work. If you need the help of an immigration lawyer, call me at (617) 722-0005 and come see me in my Boston immigration law office.

If you are facing deportation or removal from the United States and have a hearing in Immigration Court in Boston or elsewhere, your fate is in the hands of an Immigration Judge who will weigh the evidence and reach a decision. Immigration lawyers refer to this process as the Court's or the Judge's discretion.

People often underestimate the power of an Immigration Judge's discretion.  So I'd like to give you three specific examples of how Immigration Judges have the discretion to decide deportation cases:

#1:  "Why did the Immigration Judge deny my case?  All of my criminal cases were dismissed!"  Imagine that you are married to a U.S. citizen and are applying for a green card.  You have a hearing before an Immigration Judge for your I-485 application to adjust your status to permanent residency.  You have been arrested several times but all of your criminal cases were dismissed.  Even though your criminal charges didn't result in a conviction, it would be a mistake to assume that the Immigration Judge will automatically approve your I-485 just because your criminal cases did not result in a conviction.  You are not necessarily entitled to a green card.  The Immigration Judge has discretion to approve or deny your green card application.  In making that decision, the Immigration Judge will want to know more about your criminal cases even if you were not convicted.  The Judge will weigh the evidence and reach a decision in their discretion.  And if you don't convince the Immigration Judge that you deserve to become a permanent resident, you are going to lose.

#2:  Immigration Bond.  If Immigration and Customs Enforcement ("ICE") arrests you and puts you in jail, you have a right to a bond hearing where you may ask an Immigration Judge to release you on an immigration bond.  The immigration regulations require the Immigration Judge to make three important discretionary decisions.  First, as a threshold matter, the Judge must decide whether you are a danger to the community.  Unless this decision is in your favor, you will not be released on bond. Second, if the Immigration Judge believes that you are not a danger to the community, the Immigration Judge will then decide whether you are likely to return to court if released.  And, third, if the Immigration Judge decides that you are not a danger to the community and that you are likely to return to Immigration Court for future hearings, the Judge will determine the cost of the bond.  The important point is that these three key decisions--dangerousness, flight-risk, and cost of bond--are all entirely within the Immigration Judge's discretion to determine as he or she sees fit.

#3 Asylum:  If you are applying for asylum in Immigration Court, you must convince an Immigration Judge that you have suffered past persecution or have a well-founded fear of returning to your home country. To prove your claim, you may testify and present evidence.  An Immigration Judge has the discretion to decide whether you are telling the truth and whether your case deserves to be approved or denied.

If you lose in Immigration Court because the Immigration Judge makes a discretionary decision that you dislike or disagree with, you do have the right to appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals.  But no matter how much you disagree with the outcome of your case, it is extremely difficult to successfully challenge an Immigration Judge's discretionary decision.  Appealing the denial of your bond is particularly difficult because you will be in jail while the appeal is pending.  The likely result of your appeal could merely prolong your time in jail.

In short, winning or losing in Immigration Court usually boils down to an Immigration Judge's discretionary decision. And my job as a deportation defense attorney is to persuade the Immigration Judge to make a discretionary decision in your favor.

If you have questions about Boston Immigration Court, bonds, hearing, trial strategy or other issues; or if you need an attorney to represent you, please call me in my Boston office at (617) 722-0005 to schedule an immigration consultation.

Boston area residents with final orders of deportation may request a stay of removal with U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE) by filing Form I-246 at its Burlington, Massachusetts immigration office.  In the past, there had been no filing fee for this immigration application.  But, apparently, the free ride is over.  Effective immediately, a filing fee of $155 must be paid with Form I-246 in cash, money order or cashier's check (no personal checks).

As a lawyer specializing in deportation defense who frequently appears in Boston Immigration Court, I find it fascinating that a close family member of the President appeared yesterday in our court before our own Immigration Judge Shapiro.  Zeituni Onyango, the Kenyan aunt of President Obama, is in deportation proceedings in Boston as everyone on the populated Earth knows by now.

Of course, asylum applications are confidential.  I certainly have no direct knowledge about this case.  But my experience as a deportation lawyer in Boston tells me that Ms. Onyango's immigration case has been widely reported in a way that is quite misleading.  The headline of the Boston Globe, for instance, claims that the Immigration Judge allowed Ms. Onyango to stay in the U.S. until February 2010.  What is misleading about this headline is that it falsely suggests that the Immigration Judge made a discretionary decision in favor of Ms. Onyango.  This is not at all what happened at the hearing yesterday.

Allow me to explain.  But first, some background:  In 2004, according to press reports, Ms. Onyango applied for asylum and the Immigration Court in Boston denied her application.  As a result, she received an order of removal.  The Immigration and Nationality Act allows applicants to reopen removal proceedings where the applicant can present evidence of changed circumstances that could not have been presented at the prior hearing. My guess is that the immigration lawyer defending Ms. Onyango filed a motion to reopen and argued that the conditions in Kenya have changed in a way that would affect the merits of her claim.  A second and obvious argument as to changed circumstances is that Ms. Onyango would likely be a target if she were returned to Kenya because she is now well known as the aunt of the President of the United States. 

After Ms. Onyango filed her motion to reopen her order of removal, the Immigration Court in Boston had to make a discretionary decision as to whether to grant or deny the motion to reopen.  It is clear that the Court granted her motion to reopen because if it hadn't, she wouldn't have had to appear in Immigration Court.

What actually happened in Boston Immigration Court yesterdays is that, most likely, Ms. Onyango appeared at what is called a master calendar hearing.  A master calendar hearing is usually a brief, administrative hearing in which the Immigration Judge sets up the issues in contention and, typically, schedules a merits hearing at which these issues can be addressed.

So when the Boston Globe announced that Immigration Judge Shapiro allowed Ms. Onyango to remain in the U.S. until February 2010, what really happened is that she just showed up for a routine master calendar hearing and the Immigration Judge scheduled her to return for a merits hearing.  That's it.  The Immigration Judge didn't grant her a reprieve or approve her application for asylum.  This result gives us little indication about her prospects for success in immigration court.  It does tell us that the docket of Boston's Immigration Court is so full that asylum applicants need to wait almost 12 months to have their cases heard--even if your nephew is the President!

Immigration lawyers in Boston, get ready:  the new US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Massachusetts immigration office will officially open its doors on June 1, 2009.  USCIS Lawrence immigration office plans to take on up to 30% of immigration cases for Massachusetts residents currently handled in Boston in the JFK Federal Building.

I'll be posting more information about the new USCIS Lawrence, Massachusetts immigration office as soon as it becomes available.

As an immigration lawyer In Boston focusing on deportation defense, I know that each our Immigration Judges has a particular reputation and perspective.  The Immigration Judge to which your deportation case is assigned will have a great bearing on how your case is handled as well as the ultimate outcome. Immigration Court in Boston currently has the following six Immigration Judges:

Matthew J. D'Angelo
Leonard I. Shapiro
Paul M. Gagnon
Robin E. Feder
Eliza C. Klein
Francis L. Cramer

Boston Immigration Court - Schedule of Non-Detained Master Calendar Hearings:  To figure out which Boston Immigration Judge will be handling your deportation case, (assuming you a not detained) use the following schedule for master calendar hearings (FYI:  your first appearance is called a master calendar hearings):

Matthew J. D'Angelo - Wednesday morning
Leonard I. Shapiro - Wednesday afternoon
Paul M. Gagnon - Tuesday morning
Robin E. Feder - Tuesday morning
Eliza C. Klein - Thursday morning
Francis L. Cramer - Tuesday afternoon

Boston Immigration Court - Schedule of Detained Master Calendar Hearings:  For deportation cases in which the foreign national is detained by the Department of Homeland Security or U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement, the following is the schedule of master calendar hearings or bond hearings in Boston Immigration Court:

Matthew J. D'Angelo - Tuesday afternoon
Leonard I. Shapiro - Thursday morning
Paul M. Gagnon - Wednesday morning
Robin E. Feder - Monday morning
Eliza C. Klein - Monday afternoon
Francis L. Cramer - Wednesday afternoon

This evening I attended a meeting of the New England Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA).  Robert Halpin, the Court's Administrator, announced that Boston's new Immigration Judge, Brenda O'Malley, will be taking the bench and hearing deportation cases starting May 18, 2009 after training in Immigration Court in Boston, MA and Hartford, CT.  Judge O'Malley has built a distinguished career having served previously with, among other places, the Office of Immigration Litigation, the Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR) Office of Chief Immigration Judge.  Apparently, she even worked at one point as a law clerk with Boston's Immigration Court!

Boston immigration lawyers with backlogged deportation cases are thrilled that we will soon have a new, 7th Immigration Judge to relieve the Immigration Court's busy docket.

Boston deportation or a removal hearing in Immigration Court often begins with a visit from U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement (ICE). For the unfamiliar, these are the guys that deport people.  The immigration raid in New Bedford, Massachusetts was a fine example of the handiwork of ICE. If you are a green card holder but have a criminal conviction, you may have to contend with ICE. Overstayed your student (F1) or visitor visa (B1/B2)? ICE is the immigration agency you should fear.

In late 2007, U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement moved its Office of Detention and Removal (DRO) from the 17th Floor of the JFK Federal Building in Boston, MA to a new facility in Burlington, Massachusetts.  Their new address is:

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
Office of Detention and Removal Operations (DRO)
10 New England Executive Park
Burlington, Massachusetts 01803
Phone number: 781-359-7500

If a friend or family member gets arrested in Massachusetts and taken into the custody of the Department of Homeland Security, ICE agents will most like transfer them to the immigration office in Burlington, MA for processing before being moved to an immigration detention center. Immigration bonds are now posted at the ICE Detention and Removal in Burlington, MA and not the JFK Federal Building in Boston.

Recently, with the New England Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyer Association (AILA), I toured the new ICE Detention and Removal facility in Burlington. Since my job as an immigration and deportation defense lawyer in Massachusetts is to defend immigrants who ICE has arrested, I was particularly interested to see the ICE office in Burlington first-hand.

My overall impression--ICE means business! For someone like me who fights to protect people from deportation, it was intimidating to realize that so many critical resources have been devoted to ICE's new deportation facility. Its Burlington Massachusetts deportation office is tricked-out with latest state-of-the-art electronics and a "War Room" with 100 cubicles--all filled with immigration officers hard at work figuring out how to arrest and deport people. In terms of detention, ICE's Burlington office has 4 cells, each holding about 25 immigration detainees.

Unless the Obama Administration shifts focus, I fully expect the surge in deportation cases through Massachusetts and New England to continue in 2009 and beyond.

On our tour, the ICE officers were generous hosts. I was impressed by their professionalism. We had an opportunity to meet with Bruce Chadbourne, the Director of ICE Field Office with supervisory responsibilties over Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Director Chadbourne met with us immigration lawyers and informally answered our questions at great length. I came away convinced that the ICE Burlington, MA office is committed to working cooperatively with the Massachusetts immigration attorneys to resolve any issues.

As a deportation attorney in Boston, I frequently appear in Immigration Court  Currently, I serve as a liaison to the Boston's Immigration Court, Executive Office of Immigration Review (EOIR), on behalf of the New England Chapter of the American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA).

Looking into my crystal ball, here are some positive changes that I personally predict are coming to Boston's Immigration Court in 2009:

Boston gets a new Immigration Judge:  It is anticipated that in 2009 Boston will have a new immigration judge.  I will post more news on our new IJ as soon as her appointment is made official.

Boston will get a new Immigration Court rooms:  The space on the 3rd floor of the JFK Federal building, formerly occupied by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), is being renovated as an additional Immigration Court room.  An extra court room and a seventh Immigration Judge should help ease the Immigration Court's crushing docket of immigration cases.

Immigration Court in Boston goes high-tech:  Boston deportation hearings in Immigration Court will be digitally recorded starting in 2009.  This shift to digital recordings should make it easier for me as deportation defense attorney to obtain and review Immigration Court hearings.

As immigration agencies such as USCIS and ICE consider moves out of Boston, it's nice to see expansion plans for EOIR within the existing office at the JFK Federal Building.  And these significant improvement should improve the functioning of the Immigration Court in Boston. 

Congratulations! An Immigration Judge in Boston just ordered the release of your friend or loved one with an immigration bond. He or she will be released from the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement soon after you post your immigration bond. As an attorney specializing in deportation defense, I routinely represent detained immigrants in Immigration Court in Boston. I can offer you the following suggestions to help make the process of posting an immigration bond a more hassle-free experience.

1. Call the immigration bond officer first at (781) 359-7670.

Before you drive to the immigration office in Burlington, Massachusetts to post your immigration bond, I strongly suggest that you call and speak to the immigration bond officer in charge of your friend or loved one. 781-359-7670 is a phone number that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has dedicated exclusively to immigration bond inquiries. All other immigration questions should be directed to the main phone number at 781-359-7500. By calling in advance, you're putting the immigration bond officer on notice that you plan to post the bond. This extra step will give the immigration officer time to locate the file of the person detained and to do other preliminary work. As a result, the immigration bond will be confirmed faster and your friend or loved one will be released with less delay.

2. Who can post an immigration bond?

An immigration bond can only be posted by someone with U.S. citizenship, legal permanent resident (green card) status or other valid US immigration status.

3. What information do I need to post an immigration bond?

You will need the A number (alien registration number) of your friend or loved one and the address where he or she will live after being released from custody.

4. Where do you post an immigration bond in the Boston, Massachusetts area?

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)
Office of Detention and Removal Operations (DRO)
10 New England Executive Park
Burlington, Massachusetts 01803
Main number: 781-359-7500
Immigration Bond Inquiries: 781-359-7670

5. When can I post an immigration bond in the Boston?

Monday - Friday from 9:00 AM to 2:45 PM (EST). I recommend that you arrive early in the day.

6. What form of payment are accepted for posting an immigration bond?

Immigration bonds must be posted using a bank check or money order made payable to Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Do not abbreviate or use acronyms. Immigration and Customs Enforcement must be spelled out in full in your check or money order or your payment will not be accepted. You cannot pay an immigration bond using cash or a personal check.

7. What forms of ID are required for posting an immigration bond?

In order to post an immigration bond, you will need a driver's license, passport, or other government-issued photo ID. You will also need to bring your original Social Security Card or Social Security Form SSA-2458. If you are a US citizen, bring your original certificate of naturalization or US passport. If not, you must bring your alien resident card (green card) or valid, unexpired work permit (EAD card, Employment Authorization Document).