Miracle Case Decision: Motions to Retain Venue and Bond GRANTED
We are SOOO elated that our client was released on bond from Krome today! Under the Trump Administration, we have to FIGHT even more ZEALOUSLY for our clients' rights than ever before! First, we had to fight to get our client moved back to Krome, and second, we had to advocate that he be released on bond. We won BOTH fights, praise God!
Let me tell you about the obstacles we had to deal with in this client's case and how we overcame them. Our office had already filed a Motion for Bond for client, when days before his bond hearing 2 weeks ago, ICE randomly moved our client 6.5 hours north to a detention center in Baker County, FL! We were outraged when the judge said he couldn't decide his bond case while he was at Baker County, because it was in the Orlando Court jurisdiction. His entire family, home and attorney (me) was located in Miami, and it was so inefficient and obstructive to move my client. ICE was the one who moved him for no reason, yet the ICE government attorney filed a motion to move his case to the Orlando Court, which would require me to travel to Orlando to represent him or else spend a lot more time and money drafting a request to represent him by telephone to the Court.
I filed a Motion to Retain Venue at Krome and Opposing DHS's Motion to Change Venue to Orlando. I also reached out to the media, and an NBC Producer was working with me and the client's family to schedule interviews for a news story on NBC Channel 6.
Further, I called the Krome Court Administrator and the ICE Assistant Field Office Director, and I let them both know that my client needed to be moved back to Krome immediately and that the NBC reporter would be contacting them shortly.
The very next day, my client was moved back to Krome! I don't think it was a coincidence that he was moved so quickly after they learned of the NBC news story. But we will do whatever it takes to protect our clients and their rights!
At the bond hearing Monday, the government attorney and even the judge tried to focus on his previous arrests - which did NOT result in convictions - and the fact that he had not yet married his USC girlfriend. Because he is a DACA recipient and was pending a renewal, and you cannot file to renew DACA while you are detained, the judge said my client wasn't eligible for any relief from deportation right now. Which was all true. But I KEPT FIGHTING and reminding the judge of his family in the US, his eligibility to obtain a green card as soon as he married his fiancee. I reiterated that his previous arrests are NOT convictions and his current pending convictions are not convictions either. In short, I ADVOCATED for my client, also pointing out to the judge that sick of his family members came to the court that morning to show their support. In the end, the judge decided to Grant my client a bond for $7,500.00, which is a great bond price considering his pending criminal cases and the fact that he hasn't yet married his USC girlfriend. JUSTICE prevails!!!
There are fewer things more rewarding than getting a deserving client out of detention and reuniting them with their families! To hear his mother's ecstatic voice when she heard he got bond made my heart melt. I am looking forward to helping this client obtain his green card next, after he married his USC girlfriend and representing him in court through the process.
I know many attorneys who practice more lucrative areas of law like insurance defense or corporate law, but I personally could not imagine practicing another area of law because I am passionate about reuniting my clients with their families and defending their rights. Call me at 305-501-0783 to schedule a consultation to help you or your family member. We want to help YOU achieve your American Dream!
