[pdf] Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 Part II (+)

Report, with Minority Views, to accompany H.R. 3244. The Committee on the Judiciary, to whom was referred the bill (H.R. 3244) to combat trafficking of persons, especially into the sex trade, slavery, and slavery-like conditions, in the United States and countries around the world through prevention, through prosecution and enforcement against traffickers, and through protection and assistance to victims of trafficking, having considered the same, reports favorably thereon with an amendment and recommends that the bill as amended do pass.

[pdf] Guidance on Standards and Methods for Determining Whether a Substantial Connection Exists Between Battery or Extreme Cruelty and Need for Specific Public Benefits (December 11, 1997) (+)

The Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996 (PRWORA), as amended by the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996, provides that certain categories of aliens who have been subjected to battery or extreme cruelty in the United States are “qualified aliens” eligible for certain federal, state, and local public benefits. To be qualified under this provision, an alien must demonstrate, among other things, that there is a substantial connection between the battery or extreme cruelty and the need for the public benefit sought. This notice provides guidance to benefit providers regarding substantial connection determinations.

[pdf] Supplemental Guidance on Battered Alien Self-Petitioning Process and Related Issues (+)

Memorandum moving VAWA self-petitioning adjudications to a centralized unit the “VAWA Unit” at the Vermont Service Center. This memo moved VAWA self-petitioning adjudications from INS field offices and regional service centers across the country to the VAWA Unit for adjudication VAWA self-petitioning applications filed by abused immigrant spouses and children who had suffered battery or extreme cruelty perpetrated by their U.S. Citizens and lawful permanent resident spouses and parents.

[pdf] Memorandum: Supplemental Guidance on Battered Alien Self-Petitioning Process and Related Issues (+)

Memorandum from Paul Virtue outlining changes in the handling of I-360 self-petitions for immigrant status filed by battered spouses and children of U.S. citizens and permanent residents aliens and addresses related issues.

[pdf] Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRAIRA) of 1996 (+)

Full version of the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRAIRA) of 1996 , public law 104-208. Confidentiality provisions are listed in Section 384.

[pdf] VAWA Self-Petitioning Regulations – Interim Rule (March 26, 1996) (+)

Federal Register: Petition to Classify Alien a s Immediate Relative of a United States Citizen or as a Preference Immigrant; Self-Petitioning for Certain Battered or Abused Spouses and Children. This interim rule amends the Immigration and Naturalization Service (“the Service”) regulations to allow a spouse or child to seek immigrant classification if he or she has been battered by, or subjected to extreme cruelty committed by, the citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse or parent. It also permits a spouse to seek classification if his or her child has been battered by, or subjected to extreme cruelty committed by, the citizen or lawful permanent resident spouse. A
qualified spouse or child who is living in the United States but is not a permanent resident may use the procedures established by this rule to self-petition for immigrant classification.

[pdf] Department of Homeland Security’s Position on Respondent’s Eligibility for Relief: In Re Alvarado-Pena (+)

This case presents the issue of whether the applicant may qualify for asylum based on her fear of domestic violence. More specifically, this case raises the question whether the applicant’s fear of domestic violence may establish a well-founded fear of persecution on account of membership in a particular social group. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) argues that, under some limited circumstances, a victim of domestic violence can establish eligibility for asylum on this basis, and that the applicant in this case has established such eligibility.

[pdf] Case Summary: Matter of A-R-C-G, 26 I&N Dec. 388 (B.I.A. 2014) (+)

The Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA) on August 26, 2014 issued a precedent setting ruling that established the circumstances under which victims who suffer domestic violence in their home country will be eligible to received gender based asylum in the United States. This reading looks at a case where a battered spouse petitioned for asylum and withholding of removal in the United States after her husband repeatedly abused her in Guatemala.

[pdf] Operating Policy and Procedure Memorandum 97-9: Motions for “Prima Facie” Determination and Verification Requests for Battered Spouses and Children (1997) (+)

This Operating Policy and Procedure Memorandum concerns the procedures for handling a verification process to identify those aliens whose applications for suspension of deportation have been granted under section 244(a)(3) of the Immigration Nationality Act (INA) and the procedures for handling a motion for prima facie determination for those aliens, who have a pending application for suspension of deportation under 244(a)(3) or cancellation of removal under section 240A(b)(2) of the INA before an Immigration Judge. This memorandum is addressed to assistant chief immigration judges, immigration judges, court administrators, and support staff.

[pdf] Obtaining U Visa Certification from Judges in Protection Order, Family, Criminal, and Other State Court Proceedings (+)

Learning objectives for this presentation are: promote advocates and attorneys seeking U visa certification from judges, understand when judges can sign U visas and how to approach judges for certification in family, civil, and criminal court cases, identify the reasons why courts may not be signing U visa certifications, anticipate and overcome challenges, and develop a plan for approaching judges for certification.

[pdf] Operating Policies and Procedures Memorandum No. 97-7: Procedures for Identifying Potential Battered Spouse/ Battered Child Cases (+)

A memorandum about the operating policies and procedures for identifying potential battered spouse/ battered child cases from the office of the Chief Immigration Judge to all deputy chief immigration judges, all assistant chief immigration judges, all immigration judges, all court administrators, all judicial law clerks, and all court staff.

[pdf] Mandatory U-visa Certification Unnecessarily Undermines the Purpose of the Violence Against Women Act’s Immigration Protections and Its “Any Credible Evidence” Rules – A Call for Consistency (September 10, 2010) (+)

This article discusses the development of immigration law’s “any credible evidence” standard of proof and its application in VAWA and TVPA related immigration cases. This article urges reforms in immigration law to remove U-visa certification as a mandatory prerequisite that bars many otherwise eligible immigrant crime victims from being able to access U-visa protections.

[pdf] Dreams Lost, Dreams Found: Undocumented Women in the Land of Opportunity (+)

This study was designed to identify problems and social service needs of undocumented Filipina, Latina, and Chinese women in the Bay Area. Undocumented women in the Bay Area are a growing and neglected population in need of services. This study examines the factors causing increased migration by women to the U.S., and how these factors influence women’s lives once they are here. Findings of this study reveal the economic hardship of undocumented women and their families and provide insight into immigrant women’s experiences with domestic violence. This survey was the precursor to the survey conducted in the early 1990s by Ayuda.