By Sister Pat Ferrick, SSND
I belong to a group of people who volunteer to accompany those who are seeking asylum to their court hearings. Several weeks ago, I had attended a Master Hearing for an Indigenous woman from Ecuador (I’ll call her María) and her 12-year-old daughter (Joanna). I attended their Individual Hearing two weeks ago.
Before their Individual Hearing began, the judge asked both Joanna and her older brother (Jaime) to leave the courtroom and wait outside. She said that she did not want the young girl to have to hear her mother’s testimony of violence.
During the testimony the judge said several times that she did believe what María was saying, but María’s only evidence to support her claim of violence that she received from her partner in Ecuador was a letter from her older daughter telling of the physical and emotional atrocities that her mother had endured for years at the hands of her father.
María said that she wanted a better life and a good education for her 12-year-old daughter.
After María had testified, she asked that Jaime be permitted to testify. My heart fell to the floor when Jaime contradicted his mother on various important points. The Judge said that María and Joanna did not qualify for any of the five categories (race, religion, ethnicity, political opinion, belonging to a special social group) necessary for asylum and therefore she could not grant them asylum.
The Judge asked the Prosecutor if she would agree to granting them Prosecutorial Discretion (PD). The Prosecutor said that she would agree but would have to ask her supervisor about it. Prosecutorial Discretion means that their cases would be dropped, and they would not be subject to deportation. The downside of PD is that they cannot apply for work permits or for benefits. The Judge called for a recess while the Prosecutor went to talk to her supervisor.
We went out into the hall and talked about what PD would mean for María and Joanna. When we explained that it meant that they would not be deported but would not be able to obtain work permits, they felt desperate. María is 52 years old and only wants to work so that she can be assured that Joanna has a good education and will have a better life than she has had. María said that since it was the only alternative, she would accept it for the two of them but was tearful and sad.
We entered the courtroom and the Prosecutor said that her supervisor would not approve the PD but would accede to whatever the Judge decided. The Judge asked if that meant that she could decide the verdict and would face no objection. The Prosecutor said that was correct. The Judge said in that case she would grant them ASYLUM!
You can imagine our delight! María, Joanna and Jaime ran up and hugged the Judge. She and the Prosecutor also seemed delighted. We had witnessed a miracle, especially since this Judge has only granted positive responses in 13.2% of the 522 immigration claims that she has heard since 2017!
The Judge told them to come back any time in the morning of November 22 to pick up the official asylum papers.
We spoke informally with the Prosecutor who said: “I need to listen to my boss, but I also need to listen to the Man Upstairs.” She looked up and pointed her finger upward. The “Man Upstairs" had come through. She had witnessed a miracle!
P.S. I also accompanied them when they went to pick up their official document. We waited to enter the courtroom, but the Judge came out of her chamber to present them with the documents, explained each of the terms of the asylum decree, and told them that they would be eligible to apply for work permits and a green card. You can imagine how happy we all were! God is good!
