Case: Marriage in Detention and Custody Release / Review
Client: Chinese
Location: Cleveland Ohio
Our client, a Chinese National, was picked up by ICE in late August 2011 because of an outstanding deportation order. His relative retained our firm to represent him to work on getting his release. After an initial evaluation, we informed our client’s relative that it would be a challenge because he was single with no family ties in the United States and he had no other favorable conditions for release.
Fortunately, our client’s fiancé had applied for asylum and her asylum interview was pending. They were about to get married but our client got detained prior, and they thought they could not get married anymore unless he was released.
We informed them that a request could be made to ICE for marriage-in-detention, and that afterwards we may have an argument that he could become a derivative applicant of his fiancé’s asylum application which could be a basis for requesting his release. We informed them it was a stretch, but based on the prosecutorial memo released last year, it was worth a shot.
Despite the fact that our client was in detention, our firm made arrangements for his fiancé to obtain a marriage license and also contacted ICE for permission for them to get married at the detention facility. Subsequently, we arranged for a minister to conduct the wedding ceremony in jail for our client and his fiancé. We filed the request and after a few days, the Detroit Regional Immigration and Customs Enforcement office approved it.
After their marriage, we immediately filed a “Motion to Stay Removal” for the client with ICE. Prior to our client’s detention reaching 90 days, we filed a “Request for Release on 90-Day Custody Review”, but unfortunately, ICE issued a decision continuing detention. We negotiated further with ICE and even personally went to their office at the Federal Building. Soon, we were given a chance to submit another “Request for Release – Custody Review” before jurisdiction got transferred to Washington DC. We argued that once his wife’s asylum is approved, she would be able to file an I-730 for our client, who then can file a DHS Request to Join in a Motion to Reopen or a Sua Sponte Motion to Reopen to seek derivative asylee status as the beneficiary of an approved I-730. Simultaneously, we also filed a “Deferred Action Request” pursuant to the recent John Morton memo.
On January 5, 2011, the ICE officer personally called our office to inform us that the Detroit ICE considered our second request and decided to release our client. He was released under order of supervision that same day.
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