Oh joy! Monday has never been my favorite day of the week, but I appreciate it even less when I have to get out of bed earlier than usual. Ashley is not a pleasant person in the morning much like her magnificent mother, but at least I don’t take a swing at people for waking me up. We had our 9th immigration hearing this morning which explains the extraordinary mood that descended on me this am. I suppose there are worse things I could have had to do that would force me out of bed at the butt crack of dawn, but that way of thinking is too rational for me right now. Anyway, after the obligatory tears and punches were thrown by my sweet daughter I was able to get her ready for school in record time. There still was a slight argument over whether or not children are able to wear sandals with socks, the answer is a resounding no by the way, and in the end I had to practically sit on Ashley to get her shoes on. I think the reason she hates shoes so much is they are almost too small for her. I hope to be able to buy her new shoes on Friday when I get paid again, but whether that is possible or not remains to be seen. Ashley has been eating everything on her plate and then some lately which is a sure sign of an approaching growth spurt. I’m not looking forward to that because that means I need to go out and buy her more clothes that I can’t afford. Thank God it’s garage sale season!
I pulled into the parking lot of the non-descript government building that houses the 8th circle of hell almost feeling optimistic. It’s strange that after so many hearings I can feel something besides resentment and anger during my journey. Maybe it is the anticipation at being able to see my best friend face to face after so many days without the privilege that improves my mood, although I truly believe it shouldn’t be a privilege to look my husband in the eye when I’m talking with him. Once again the miniscule waiting room is packed with the family of the detained so I move into the visiting room to sit on the little stools available in there. There is only one attorney in the room when I arrive so the chances are good we’ll get in sooner rather than later. Shortly after Graciela arrives we got kicked out of the visiting room so we went to stand in the hallway, by this time it’s 9 am. In the hallway we see another attorney from Lance’s office and we learn that Lance himself will also be here shortly for a hearing. Graciela told me that Lance had a new client he was here to represent today and that he didn’t want to make her give them the bad news. Apparently the young man had been very busy during his adult life which resulted in 50 or so incidents on his criminal record.
Judge Whatshisface: You’re here again for Lance right? This is on number 11, so tell me what’s going on.
Graciela: USCIS has everything. We received notification that the Medical Exam and other proofs were received back on April 27th so we are simply waiting for the interview to be scheduled.
Judge Whatshisface: Still waiting on USCIS? Really? Ok. What does the government have to say about this?
Boris Badenov: June 11th.
Judge Whatshisface: Fine. It’s on my calendar. You do know that you can file for a continuance by fax or mail instead of coming all the way out here right?
Graciela: Yes I am aware, thank you.
Judge Whatshisface: Let’s get this done then. Bring in number 11, Mr. Alberto Mendez.
About a minute after this conversation, Alberto was ushered into the room and seated beside Graciela. The recorder was turned on and the continuance was granted in a hearing that officially lasted a mere 2 minutes and 42 seconds. On our way out of the court room Graciela stated that she was aware of that and told me on the way out of the court room that going to the hearing provides them with the opportunity to tell USICE if something changed on Friday. I come to the hearings out of guilt from missing the hearing where Alberto pled guilty to Riot 2, and for the opportunity to see his handsome face.
I got to talk to Alberto after the hearing and I’m sure Graciela would say he looks the same as he always does, but he still has a defeated aura surrounding him. I sat down to visit and Graciela left the room, she’d come into the visiting area with me in case the guards tried to say I couldn’t talk to him. I told Alberto that I'd seen Lance in the hallway with another client, so he wanted to know why Lance didn't come to his hearing. I told him that Graciela does our hearings so that Lance doesn't have to charge us for excessive appearances. I said I would see if Lance would be able to stop over and talk to him for a minute. My words echoing in the room when the door opened and Lance magically appeared. He told me that to tell Alberto that USCIS is just waiting for Alberto's filed to be forwarded from USCIS Chicago in order to schedule the interview. Lance said he was speaking to the guy 'that makes things happen' and was pushing him to request that the file be sent over via FedEx. Lance was optimistic that we would have our interview before or on the date of the next hearing and stated that Alberto will be prepared for the interview.
I have to be honest and say that I was a bit miffed that my husband was happier to see to Lance then he was to see me, but I understand it. Lance told me a few more things to tell Alberto including a crack about how Alberto no longer looked like a member of the Mafia since he had shaved his head. Alberto looked confused when I translated that bit, but I reminded him of the hundreds of lost haircut applications and the resulting ponytail he was determined to forget about. Lance asked if we had any questions for him, which we didn't, so I told him that Alberto was just happy to see 'his pretty face' to retaliate for the Mafia comment. Lance quipped that he had lost 10 pounds since the last time we saw him so he is just as pretty as he’ll ever be. I believe he had begun training for a triathlon shortly before the last hearing he attended, and I only remember because he was stretching and moving as though his life depended on it. Lance said to me quietly that in another minute he was going to be yelling at his client, which prompted me to ask if he wanted me to leave the room since I don’t want to compromise the client-attorney privilege. Lance said it was fine if I stayed, but just warned again that he was going to yell at his client and that’s exactly what he did. Alberto asked me a few times what he was saying and I did answer, although I kept the information very general. The experience served to cement in our minds that Lance was absolutely the right attorney for us. He was upset that the client had not disclosed his extensive criminal record (50+ encounters with the police since he was 18 and I swear the guy cannot be older than me). He told the guy that he was not able to help him and he was not going to take his mother's money for case that had little to no chance of success. He said if his family was affluent there were a few things he could try if they wanted him too, but that isn't the case so it’s a moot point. As he got up to leave the room so that the client’s mother could talk to him, Lance leaned over and whispered that in a few minutes there was going to be a lot of crying in this room. Alberto looked confused so I told him a little more about what he had said to this client and what that meant in general.
He then left to break the news to the mother and explained to her why he wasn't able to help. He wanted to make sure that she understood why he couldn’t help them and that if she went to another attorney, there is a chance they would take her money and still not be able to help her son. I met up with Lance after I left the visiting room and he said he would walk out to the parking lot with me. We talked about a few different things, like Alberto’s inability to remember dates or specifics and my irritating immigration-related arguments with Gisela. Lance offered to talk to her about our case for me to explain why this case was different from David’s baby-mama or Roscio’s son, but he said that we would have to authorize him to speak with her beforehand. I’d rather it not come to that, but I’m glad he made the offer. Lance assured me that Alberto will be prepared for the interview. I reminded him about the upcoming hearing to contest the order to pay restitution, and he said he wanted to do some additional research to see if we can use the fact that Alberto has served more than 2/3 of his sentence to our benefit.
Well that certainly was a longer post than I expected, but I feel better for having vented.
“If my mind can conceive it, and my heart can believe it, I know I can achieve it.”
Jesse Jackson
Ciao
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