Temporary Acceptance of H-1B Petitions Without LCAs

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced a 120-day period in which it will temporarily accept H-1B petitions filed without Labor Condition Applications (LCAs) that have been certified by the Department of Labor (DOL).

USCIS has received requests from the public to accept H-1B petition filings that include LCAs that have been filed with DOL but that DOL has not yet certified. Processing delays arising from DOL’s recently implemented “iCERT” system have resulted in increased processing times (beyond 7 days) for certain LCA certifications. Affected employers and beneficiaries have reported being negatively impacted by DOL’s increased processing times which currently delays their ability to file H-1B petitions with USCIS. DOL expects that the current increase in LCA processing times is temporary.

As a public accommodation, USCIS began accepting H-1B petitions filed with uncertified LCAs for a 120-day period. The 120-day period began on November 5, 2009 and runs through March 4, 2010. However, USCIS will only accept such H-1B petitions if they are filed at least 7 calendar days after the LCAs were filed with DOL and include evidence of these filings. The only acceptable evidence of filing is a copy of DOL’s email giving notice of receipt of the LCA.

Petitioners who seek to take advantage of this temporary flexibility in the normal filing procedures for H-1B petitions must wait until they receive a request for evidence (RFE) before they submit the DOL-certified LCA to USCIS in support of the H-1B petition. USCIS will give petitioners a period of 30 calendar days within which they must send in a DOL certified LCA in response to the RFE. USCIS will only approve H-1B petitions that include certified LCAs.

If you or a loved one require further information about H-1B visas or any other immigration law matter, please contact us to schedule your initial consultation with an experienced immigration lawyer today. Our immigration law attorneys represent clients in Woodbridge, Manassas, Stafford, Alexandria, Arlington, Fredericksburg, Richmond, Fairfax and all of Northern Virginia, as well as throughout Maryland and the District of Columbia.

Three Arrested For Robbery Of Rite Aid In Stafford County

Three people from out of the area have been arrested in connection with the Wednesday night armed robbery at a Rite Aid in Stafford County, according to a Free-Lance Star article.

David A. Callison, 22, of Hopewell, Kristyn Renee Murray, 20, of Front Royal and Danielle Nicole Matthews, 20, of Dinwiddie were all arrested in Dinwiddie late Friday night, Stafford Sheriff's spokesman Bill Kennedy said. All three are charged with armed robbery, using a firearm in the commission of a felony and conspiracy to commit robbery. Mr. Callison is also charged with wearing a mask in public.

Detective Chris Cameron's investigation allegedly revealed that the three robbed the store at 1095 International Parkway to get money for drugs and court costs for unrelated cases. They had been at a party in Warrenton prior to the robbery. It is not clear what led police to the suspects, but the key information came from the Dinwiddie Sheriff's Office, Kennedy said.

Two suspects entered the store at 9:10 p.m. One posed as a customer, and the second one came in moments later displaying a handgun. They left in a dark pickup truck with an undisclosed amount of money.

Police initially thought that the suspect whose image was captured on a store surveillance camera was a young man, but she turned out to be a woman, Kennedy said. Police also did not know about the second woman, who was driving the getaway vehicle.

There were two similar robberies in Fauquier within 90 minutes of the Stafford robbery; police are still investigating the possibility that the same suspects were involved.

The pickup truck and the mask used in the Stafford robbery were recovered in Dinwiddie, Kennedy said. All three suspects were being held in Dinwiddie pending transfer to the Rappahannock Regional Jail.

All three individuals face serious criminal charges with severe maximum punishments, and would be well advised to secure representation by experienced criminal defense counsel.

The criminal defense lawyers at Livesay & Myers, P.C. represent clients throughout Northern and Central Virginia, including Fauquier County and Stafford County, Virginia. If you or a loved one have been charged with a crime, contact us to schedule your free consultation with a Virginia criminal defense attorney today.

Richard Dennis Singer Charged With Sexual Assault In Prince William County

A local businessman faces charges after two 17 year old boys told police he sexually assaulted them, beginning when they were young children, according to an InsideNoVA.com article.

Richard “Dick” Dennis Singer, 62, of Gainesville, Virginia was arrested after the teens, who are related to Singer, reported the alleged abuse to police on September 17, 2009, said Prince William police spokeswoman Erika Hernandez.

Mr. Singer is listed as CEO and President of Singer and Associates, a Manassas-based firm which specializes in the sale of fire and rescue equipment to agencies in Virginia, Maryland and Delaware.

The victims were both 10 years old when the alleged assaults began, said Hernandez, who released the information about the arrest for the first time Monday.

The assaults allegedly took place in Prince William County, but Hernandez could not release how many times the victims were allegedly assaulted.

Mr. Singer is charged with two counts of aggravated sexual battery, one count of forcible battery, and with taking indecent liberties with minor. Mr. Singer was released from the Prince William-Manassas Regional Jail on bond last Thursday.

The charges against Mr. Singer carry severe maximum punishments under Virginia law. Individuals facing such charges require specialized and aggressive legal defense.

The sex crimes defense lawyers at Livesay & Myers, P.C. represent clients throughout Prince William County, including Manassas and Gainesville, Virginia on sex crimes charges. If you or a loved one have been charged with a sexual offense, contact us to schedule your free consultation with a Virginia sex crimes defense attorney today.

Anthony Tyrone Proctor And Two Others Injured In North Stafford Wreck

A Triangle teen was charged with reckless driving yesterday after a three-vehicle collision on Interstate 95 northbound in North Stafford that left three people injured, according to a Free-Lance Star article.

The 17-year-old was driving a 2004 Ford Explorer when he apparently lost control of it on the rain-slickened on-ramp from eastbound Garrisonville Road at approximately 1 p.m., State Trooper Helmes Jaime said.

The teen apparently over-corrected, and the Explorer spun into the right lane of northbound I-95 where it was struck on the passenger side by a northbound Ryder rental truck driven by 45-year-old Anthony Tyrone Proctor of Fairmount Heights, Maryland, Jaime said.

The rental truck overturned and landed beneath the Garrisonville Road overpass blocking the right and center lanes.

As it rolled, it crossed into the path of a 2001 Honda CR-V driven by 67-year-old Freddie Lee Smith of Dumfries.

The CR-V struck the rental truck and then traveled off the left side of the road and up an embankment, Jaime said.

Three people were taken to local hospitals. Mr. Proctor and the 17-year-old Explorer driver were taken to Stafford Hospital Center. A 16-year-old in the front passenger seat of the Explorer had to be cut out of that vehicle before being flown to Mary Washington Hospital, Jaime said.

Northbound I-95 was closed for about an hour as a result of the wreck.

The teen's charge was for failure to maintain control of the vehicle, Jaime said.

If the 17-year-old is found to have been at fault in the accident, then Mr. Proctor and the family of the 16-year-old would both have strong claims for personal injury compensation from the teenager's insurance company.

The fact that the 17-year-old was charged with reckless driving is a good indicator that he may have been at fault in causing the accident.

We wish for a speedy recovery for all parties injured in this accident.

If you or a loved one have been involved in an automobile accident, please contact us to schedule your free consultation with an experienced Virginia personal injury attorney. Our lawyers represent clients injured in car accidents throughout Northern Virginia, including Stafford County, Virginia.

USCIC Releases "Public Charge" Fact Sheet

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has released a "Public Charge" fact sheet, which provides the following information regarding the "public charge" ground of inadmissibility and deportation in U.S. immigration law.

Introduction

Public charge has been part of U.S. immigration law for more than 100 years as a ground of inadmissibility and deportation. An individual who is likely at any time to become a public charge is inadmissible to the United States and ineligble to become a legal permanent resident. However, receiving public benefits does not automatically make an individual a public charge. This fact sheet seeks to inform non-citizens about public charge determinations and help them to make informed choices about whether to apply for certain public benefits.

Background

Under Section 212(a)(4) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), an individual seeking admission to the United States or seeking to adjust status to that of an individual lawfully admitted for permanent residence (green card) is inadmissible if the individual, "at the time of application for admission or adjustment of status, is likely at any time to become a public charge." If an individual is inadmissible, admission to the United States or adjustment of status is not granted.

Immigration and welfare laws have generated some concern about whether a non-citizen may face adverse immigration consequences for having received Federal, state, or local public benefits. Some non-citizens and their families are eligible for public benefits – including disaster relief, treatment of communicable diseases, immunizations, and children’s nutrition and health care programs – without being found to be a public charge.

Definition of Public Charge

For purposes of determining inadmissibility, agency guidance has, since 1999, defined “public charge” to mean an individual who is likely to become “primarily dependent on the government for subsistence, as demonstrated by either the receipt of public cash assistance for income maintenance, or institutionalization for long-term care at government expense.” See “Field Guidance on Deportability and Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds,” 64 FR 28689 (May 26, 1999). In determining whether an alien meets this definition for public charge inadmissibility, a number of factors must be considered, including age, health, family status, assets, resources, financial status, education, and skills. No single factor - other than the lack of an affidavit of support, if required - will determine whether an individual is a public charge.

Benefits Subject to Public Charge Consideration

The agency guidance specifies that cash assistance for income maintenance includes Supplemental Security Income (SSI), cash assistance from the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program and State or local cash assistance programs for income maintenance, often called “General Assistance” programs. Acceptance of these forms of public cash assistance could make a non-citizen inadmissible as a public charge, if all other criteria are met. However, the mere receipt of these benefits does not automatically make an individual inadmissible, ineligible to adjust status to lawful permanent resident, or deportable on public charge grounds. See “Field Guidance on Deportability and Inadmissibility on Public Charge Grounds,” 64 FR 28689 (May 26, 1999). Each determination is made on a case-by-case basis in the context of the totality of the circumstances.

In addition, public assistance, including Medicaid, that is used to support aliens who reside in an institution for long-term care – such as a nursing home or mental health institution – may also be considered as part of the public charge analysis of the totality of the circumstances. Short-term insitutionalization for rehabilitation is not subject to public charge consideration.

Benefits Not Subject to Public Charge Consideration

Under the agency guidance, non-cash benefits and special-purpose cash benefits that are not intended for income maintenance are not subject to public charge consideration. Such benefits include:

• Medicaid and other health insurance and health services (including public assistance for immunizations and for testing and treatment of symptoms of communicable diseases, use of health clinics, short-term rehabilitation services, prenatal care, and emergency medical services) other than support for long-term institutional care;
• Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP);
• Nutrition programs, including Food Stamps, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC), the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Program, and other supplementary and emergency food assistance programs;
• Housing benefits;
  
• Child care services;
• Energy assistance, such as the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP);
  
• Emergency disaster relief;
• Foster care and adoption assistance;
• Educational assistance (such as attending public school), including benefits under the Head Start Act and aid for elementary, secondary, or higher education;
  
• Job training programs;
• In-kind, community-based programs, services, or assistance (such as soup kitchens, crisis counseling and intervention, and short-term shelter);
• Non cash benefits under TANF such as subsidized child care or transit subsidies;
• Cash payments that have been earned, such as Title II Social Security benefits, government pensions, and veterans' benefits, among other forms of earned benefits, do not support a public charge determination; and
  
• Unemployment compensation is also not considered for public charge purposes.
  

Some of the above programs may provide cash benefits, such as energy assistance, transportation or child care benefits provided under TANF or the Child Care Development Block Grant (CCDBG), and one-time emergency payments under TANF. Since the purpose of such benefits is not for income maintenance, but rather to avoid the need for on-going cash assistance for income maintenance, they are not subject to public charge consideration.

Contact Our Immigration Law Attorneys

The immigration lawyers at Livesay & Myers, P.C. represent clients in Manassas, Woodbridge, Stafford, Alexandria, Arlington, Fredericksburg, Fairfax and all of Northern Virginia, as well as throughout Maryland and the District of Columbia.

Sexual Orientation Cited In More Asylum Cases

More asylum seekers from the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean are citing sexual orientation as reasons for seeking asylum, according to a new story by the Associated Press:

"Since 1994, sexual orientation has been grounds for asylum in the United States. That's when former U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno ruled in a case that persecution based on sexual orientation could be potential grounds for asylum. Until recently, those grounds have been rarely used and such cases represent only a fraction of all asylum cases. But now immigrant and gay activists say more asylum seekers from the Middle East, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean are citing sexual orientation as reasons for seeking asylum. Activists say the asylum seekers are escaping rape, persecution, violence, and threats of death from places where homosexuality is either outlawed or strongly, socially shunned."

Associated Press, October 27, 2009.

The immigration lawyers at Livesay & Myers, P.C. represent clients in Woodbridge, Manassas, Stafford, Alexandria, Arlington, Fredericksburg, Fairfax and all of Northern Virginia, as well as throughout Maryland and the District of Columbia, in asylum and other immigration law matters.

Steven Weiss and Jeremy Rodriguez Face Weapons Charges In Northern Virginia

Steven Weiss and Jeremy Rodriguez, two Florida men who police say were driving a stolen car packed with firearms and knives, were arrested Thursday morning on Interstate 95 near Woodbridge, according to an InsideNoVA.com article.

Virginia State Police Trooper M.S. Brown saw a 1997 Pontiac Bonneville traveling north on I-95 in Prince William County at 8:09 a.m. He became suspicious of the actions of the two men inside the car, said Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller, and decided to check the license plates.

When they came back as stolen, the trooper thought the men could be armed and dangerous, said Geller.

Brown then called for backup, and at 8:14 a.m. additional police cruisers arrived. Brown turned on his lights and sirens and stopped the car at the 161 mile marker in Fairfax County, said Geller.

The driver, Steven G. Weiss, 22, of Coral Springs, Florida, and the passenger, Jeremy Rodriguez, 20, of Sunrise, Florida, were arrested.

Both were charged with grand larceny and with illegally possessing a concealed weapon.

A joint investigation with Florida authorities is ongoing.

In Virginia, offenses like grand larceny and illegal possession of a concealed weapon carry severe maximum punishments. Individuals facing such charges require specialized and aggressive legal defense.

The criminal defense lawyers at Livesay & Myers, P.C. represent clients throughout Northern Virginia, including Fairfax and Prince William County, Virginia on grand larceny and weapons charges. If you or a loved one have been charged with a serious crime in Northern Virginia, contact us to schedule your free consultation with a Virginia criminal defense attorney today.