On July 1, 2009, an immigration judge granted Section 212(c) waiver to our client and allowed our client to get his permanent residency back.  Attorney Stewart Lin is the representing attorney in this matter.

Our client in this case came to the US with all of his families while he was just a few months old.  He and his families have been either permanent residents or US citizens for years.  Nevertheless, 16 years ago while he was just 18 years old, he hung around with wrong friends and was charged with crimes like burglary of vehicles, attempted murders, and delivery of controlled substance.  Fortunately, after completing his terms and probations for all of those mistakes of the youth, our client turned his life around.  He went to college, went to church, found a good job, married with a US citizen, and lives together with his aging parents and has been supporting them 

In 2007, our client went to the USCIS to renew his permanent resident card without knowing that he was removable because of those criminal records.  He was hence arrested by the USCIS at the Houston District Office, and put into immigration jail.  Through reference, his family came to our office.  Attorney Stewart Lin firstly went to the immigration court to get our client released on bond, and then represented him in the removal proceeding in the immigration court.

The former Section 212(c) waiver is a discretionary relief that an immigration judge can grant.  To prevail in such a proceeding, the respondent must show merits of his case (so called “equity”) why he deserves such a relief.  In the trial, Attorney Stewart Lin called our client, his wife, and his 76-year-old mother to the stand to testify.  We also submitted about 40 items of evidence to show the new life of Respondent.  At the end, the government counsel did not object to such a relief to our client and the presiding judge agreed that our client deserves to have such a relief.  A great result for a case which ended before July 4, the day of freedom and independence.