By Sarah Yanez, Attorney, Immigration Unit
My client Amanda, a citizen of a European country, met her United States citizen husband, Jasper, when they were both in their late teens and students attending a foreign university. After university and several years of maintaining an international dating relationship, they married in their mid-twenties in the United States.
A change in disposition
Immediately after the marriage, Jasper’s disposition changed—he became aggressive and controlling. He destroyed some of her clothes, deeming them too provocative and inappropriate. He was verbally abusive, regularly insulting her, and isolated her from contact with her friends and family.
Jasper promised to help her obtain immigration status only to threaten to deport her during his fits of rage. On one occasion, after several days of tense interactions, they got into an argument and an enraged Jasper became physically abusive towards her. This incident of physical assault was the impetus for Amanda doing all she could to seek legal assistance. She wanted a restraining order and help with her immigration status.
A cross-unit effort
In a cross-unit effort, an attorney from our family law unit assisted Amanda with obtaining a restraining order. I handled the immigration portion of her case, filing her application as a self-petitioner through the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) while concurrently applying for lawful permanent residence. VAWA creates a path to citizenship for certain battered non-citizens. Among the basic requirements for eligibility, a battered non-citizen must be the spouse, parent, or child of an abusive United States citizen or permanent resident.
Clearly, Amanda fit VAWA’s requirements and I am happy to share she became a lawful permanent resident. She also divorced Jasper and has made significant strides in her life.
