Immigrant Dies in Custody for Want of Legal Representation
A recent article in the New York Times highlights the importance of having an immigration lawyer on your side when dealing with issues of immigration, naturalization and citizenship in the United States. In the case of Maya Nand and his family, having access to an immigration lawyer at the right time could have made the difference between life and death.
Nand, 56, was reportedly a legal immigrant from Fiji who had a wife and four sons. The family apparently lived in Sacramento after its 1998 move to the U.S. Evidently sensitive to the strict nature of many immigration laws in this country, Nand had waited 10 years before moving his family to the States, so that he could gain entry legally and avoid the tragedy of deportation down the road.
Sources indicate that all four Nand sons were naturalized American citizens, and Nand himself had recently applied for citizenship, when things took a turn for the worse.
It seems Nand had been convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence in 2002, and though he had served his sentence of anger management classes and so satisfied the demands of the criminal court, the single blemish on his record was a red flag for immigration officials.
When he applied for citizenship in 2005, Nand was reportedly arrested at his home; sources report that immigration officials carted him to a detention facility in Arizona and planned to begin deportation proceedings because of his years-old criminal conviction.
The arrest apparently shocked Nand's family - at the time, neither his wife nor his sons seemed to understand the reasons behind the arrest. And it remains unclear why immigration officials didn't mail Nand a letter about the problem with his application and give him a deportation hearing in court, at which he would have had an opportunity to defend himself with the help of an immigration lawyer.
Unfortunately, Nand suffered from diabetes, and was allegedly offered insufficient medical care while in custody. Though he apparently made desperate phone calls to his family as his condition deteriorated, the sons were unable to contact an immigration lawyer who could help their father in time.
Only a few weeks after he was placed in detention, Nand reportedly suffered from a heart attack and was flown to a hospital, where he later died.
The Times reports that his family's grief was compounded by frustration and anger as they were unable to find an immigration lawyer in time to sue the detention facility over the negligent care Nand was given. The family apparently hoped to draw attention to the issue of health care in detention facilities, but was hindered by its lack of legal representation.
Unfortunately, tragedies like this can happen suddenly and without warning: immigration law in the United States is complex and often difficult to understand for non-native English speakers and those without expertise in the area of law.
If you're interested in contacting an immigration lawyer to help protect your rights in the United States, fill out our free immigration case evaluation form.