Yannetti | Criminal Defense Law Firm | Boston, Salem & Dedham Massachusetts
Call For A Free Phone Consultation
617-297-9213
Photo of the legal professionals at The Yannetti Criminal Defense Law Firm

Former Prosecutors, Aggressively Fighting For You

Photo of the legal professionals at The Yannetti Criminal Defense Law Firm

Law shields immigrants from spousal violence, but hurts innocent spouses

A federal statute intended to protect victims of abuse may be misused by noncitizen spouses resulting in false domestic-abuse charges.

The road to hell is paved with good intentions. So goes the old saying, which applies to a federal-law provision passed to protect immigrant spouses faced with abusive husbands or wives.

Violence Against Women Act

In 1994, President Clinton signed the Violence Against Women Act, known as VAWA, to prevent and address sexual assault, rape, stalking and domestic violence. The bill will expire after September 30, 2018, unless Congress reauthorizes it, which many in Congress expect to happen.

Advocacy organizations laud VAWA as having had overall a positive impact on prevention, prosecution and support for victims of sexual violence. But one provision that was meant to protect domestically battered noncitizen spouses has unintentionally ended up causing another problem: false accusations of domestic violence.

Self-petitions for domestic-violence victims

A VAWA regulation provides that the spouse of a citizen or lawful permanent resident, LPR for short, may file a self-petition for immediate relative or preference immigrant if the citizen or LPR spouse has battered or perpetrated extreme cruelty on the petitioner spouse. In short, the petition may prevent deportation and put the petitioner on track for lawful work status or a green card.

The petitioner must have exhibited good moral character for the last three years and have married in good faith. In addition, potential deportation must result in extreme hardship.

On its face and when used as intended, the self-petitioning process provides immigration relief to battered immigrant spouses. This is particularly compassionate because of the phenomenon of immigrant spouses staying in abusive relationships so that they do not lose their right to stay in the country by virtue of being married to citizens or LPRs. That is the reason for the self-petition process – so they can get out of abusive relationships without putting themselves at risk of deportation.

Misuse of self-petitions

However, immigrant spouses sometimes use the provision to falsely accuse their citizen or LPR spouses of abuse, violence or cruelty to achieve improved immigration status. In fact, this abuse of VAWA may be the plan of some immigrant spouses from the very beginning by targeting potential spouses to marry for just this reason.

An innocent spouse accused of domestic assault could face a multitude of negative repercussions:

  • Jeopardy of parental rights, child custody or visitation
  • Criminal domestic violence charges
  • Jail time
  • Harm to reputation and relationships
  • Legal costs
  • Job loss and impaired earning capacity
  • Threat to professional licenses
  • Loss of immigration status, including deportation
  • Criminal record

Seek legal representation

If your noncitizen spouse has slapped you with false allegations of abuse or cruelty, it is imperative that you get a criminal defense attorney with immigration law experience as soon as possible to protect your rights, freedom, reputation and immigration status.

The lawyers at Yannetti Criminal Defense Law Firm with offices in Boston, Salem and Dedham defend people throughout the state of Massachusetts facing false accusations of domestic violence because of VAWA.

Quotes

Client Testimonials

5 Star

In the most painful times in our lives–David, Greg and Lisa showed us their professional best–dignified, warm, gracious. David and his team will not let you down, you will be taken well care of and most importantly superbly and justly represented…
Barbara Lynch

Oh my goodness David is a miracle worker! Unbelievable results! David is so highly respected by attorneys and judges and prosecutors that he really makes an impact in court and presented our friend in the best possible light…

Jude Dasilva

Greg Johnson and David Yannetti are simply the best. After having two other attorneys on a case, I hired them and got results where others failed. They work hard for you and I highly recommend them!…

Vivian Trinh

If it was not for Mr. Yannetti I could have lost my career and opportunity to come back to USA again given that I am not a US citizen. Thank you Mr. Yannetti for all you did for me and my family. You and your office were truly there for me in my darkest hour…

Ajit Gupta

Greg Johnson is a charming attorney and seems to truly care about his client’s and the outcome of their case. If you ever need an experienced criminal defense Lawyer, Yannetti Criminal Defense Law Firm is the one to call!…

Ramone

“I’ve got your back,” he told me early on. David did not disappoint. By showing up with David in the courtroom, I felt I’d made a clear statement of intent. The case was duly dropped…

James Brooks

Martindale-Hubbell | AV | Preeminent | Peer Rated for Highest Level of Professional Excellence | 2020
Best Lawyers | Best Law Firms | U.S. News | 2022
Avvo | 10.0 | Superb | Top Attorney Criminal Defense
Super Lawyers
Fox News | Criminal Defense Analyst
CNN | Criminal Defense Analyst
ID | Investigation Discovery | Consultant
Massachusetts | Lawyers Weekly | Criminal Defense Expert