Vargas v. Lynch

214 F. Supp. 3d 388, 2016 WL 5939739, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 141040
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Pennsylvania
DecidedOctober 12, 2016
DocketCIVIL ACTION NO. 16-1386
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 214 F. Supp. 3d 388 (Vargas v. Lynch) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Vargas v. Lynch, 214 F. Supp. 3d 388, 2016 WL 5939739, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 141040 (E.D. Pa. 2016).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM

EDUARDO C. ROBRENO, Judge.

Plaintiffs Danny Vargas (“Danny”), a United States citizen, and his mother, Gladys LaTorre (“Gladys”), a native and [390]*390citizen of Peru, together petition the Court to review immigration agency actions that could result in Gladys’s forcible removal to Peru after having lived in the United States for the past 22 years. Defendants Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”), United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (“USCIS”), and various individuals working in their official capacities for those agencies (collectively with the agencies, “Defendants”) have moved to dismiss Plaintiffs’ complaint on the basis that this Court lacks subject matter jurisdiction or, alternatively, that Plaintiffs have failed to state a claim.

For the reasons that follow, the Court will grant Defendants’ motion to dismiss on the basis that the Court lacks subject matter jurisdiction.

I. FACTUAL BACKGROUND

On April 3, 1993, at age 34, Gladys LaTorre (née Vargas) entered the United States without inspection from her native Peru. Compl. ¶ 8, ECF No. 1. Three years later, on February 16, 1996, she married United States citizen Semaya LaTorre (“Sammy”) in Pennsylvania, and the couple obtained a residence at 614 Carpenter Street, Philadelphia, PA 19147. Id. at ¶ 9.

On March 14, 1997, just over a year after they were married, Sammy filed an 1-130 Immediate Relative Immigrant Petition for Gladys (“Sammy’s Petition”). Id. at ¶ 10. In conjunction with this petition, the Immigration and Naturalization Service (“INS”) interviewed Sammy and Gladys sometime in July or August 1997.1 Id. at ¶ 11; Mot. Dismiss ¶ 5, ECF No. 4. During the interview, an immigration officer separated the couple and posed questions to them individually. Id. at ¶ 12. While separated, Sammy and Gladys provided discrepant answers to like questions, including what they had eaten for breakfast that morning and how they had celebrated their birthdays together. Id.; see also Pis.’ Ex. B, ECF No. 1-4. These discrepancies caused their case to be referred to the INS “investigations branch.” Id. at ¶ 13.

On February 23, 1999, INS agents visited the couple’s address of record, 614 Carpenter Street, and found Gladys but not Sammy there. Id. at ¶ 14. On March 8, 1999, agents visited Sammy’s mother at her residence, located at 3747 N. 7th Street, Philadelphia, 19140. Id. at ¶ 15. Though Sammy was not present during this visit, Sammy’s stepfather informed the INS agents that Sammy resided at 3747 N. 7th Street. Id.

INS agents visited 3747 N. 7th Street again the next day, and this time, Sammy was present at the residence. Id. at ¶ 16. The INS noted that Sammy’s driver’s license .listed his address as 3747 N. 7th Street, and, according to the INS, Sammy admitted to residing there. Mot. Dismiss ¶ 9. Further, the INS maintains that Sammy’s mother, stepfather, and sister all stated during this visit that they did not know the name of Sammy’s wife.2 Id.

On May 13, 1999, Sammy and Gladys appeared for a second interview in connection with Sammy’s Petition. Compl. ¶ 17. The couple again provided discrepant answers to like questions, and consequently, the interviewing officer had INS agents accompany the couple to their marital [391]*391home at 614 Carpenter Street. Id at ¶¶ 17-18.

On April 27, 2001, Danny, who is Gladys’s son and a U.S. citizen, filed his own 1-130 Immediate Relative Petition for Gladys (“Danny’s First Petition”). Id. at ¶ 20. The INS approved this petition on October 8, 2001. Pis.’ Ex. C, ECF No. 1-4.

On February 26, 2003, USCIS3 issued a Notice of Intent to Deny (“NOID”) regarding Sammy’s Petition on the basis that Sammy had “failed to demonstrate that [his] marriage was for some purpose other than to confer on [Gladys] an immigration benefit.” Pis.’ Ex. B, ECF No. 1-4. On March 7, 2003, Sammy and Gladys amicably divorced, thereby rendering Sammy’s Petition automatically revoked by operation of law.4 Compl. ¶ 23.

On September 4, 2003, Sammy and Gladys responded to the NOID regarding Sammy’s Petition by sending USCIS a copy of their divorce decree. Id. at ¶ 24. They also submitted bona fides evidence including bank statements, utility bills, a lease, letters of support, and family photos. Id.

On April 29, 2004, Gladys filed a Form 1-485 Application to Adjust Status based on the October 8, 2001, approval of Danny’s First Petition. Id. at ¶ 25. Several months later, on November 22, 2004, US-CIS officially denied Sammy’s Petition based solely on the fact that the couple had divorced. Id. at ¶ 26. USCIS expressly declined to consider the additional bona fides evidence submitted by Sammy and Gladys, stating that “[i]n that the relationship no longer exists, there is no need to address this information.” Pis.’ Ex. I, ECF No. 1-5.

On March 10, 2006, USCIS issued a Notice of Intent to Revoke (“NOIR”) regarding Danny’s First Petition. Id. at ¶ 27. The NOIR stated that Danny’s First Petition was “approved in error” and “without prior consideration of substantial evidence in the record that would have precluded the approval of [the] petition.” Pis.’ Ex. E, ECF No. 1-4. The NOIR stated further that USCIS “conducted an independent review of the record and found substantial and probative evidence establishing that the beneficiary previously entered into a sham marriage with Semaya LaTorre in an attempt to obtain immigration benefits.” Id.

One month later, on April 10, 2006, Danny and Gladys responded to the NOIR by submitting updated bona fides evidence, including joint bank account records (of Sammy and Gladys) and affidavits from, among others, Sammy and his mother and sister. Compl. at ¶ 28. Additionally, Danny requested that USCIS provide him with supporting evidence to substantiate its allegations against his mother.5 Id.

[392]*392According to USCIS, an immigration officer spoke with Sammy via telephone on May 4, 2006 regarding the contents of his affidavit. Id. at ¶ 29. Just over one week later, on May 12, 2006, USCIS revoked Danny’s First Petition “based on overwhelming evidence contained in the record ... showing] that [Gladys] and [Sammy] entered into a sham marriage in an attempt to obtain immigration benefits.” Pis.’ Ex. K, ECF No. 1-6.

On May 27, 2006, Danny filed an EOIR-29 Notice of Appeal challenging the revocation (“First Appeal”) with the Board of Immigration Appeals (“BIA”). Compl. ¶ 31. The BIA apparently never rendered a decision on this appeal. See Mot. Dismiss at 10 n.2 (“[I]t appears that the [BIA] did not issue a decision on the [First Appeal] due in part to [Danny] filing a second 1-130 visa petition.”).

On August 18, 2007, Sammy died in a motorcycle accident. Compl. ¶ 32. Just under two years later, on August 3, 2009, the Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) placed Gladys into removal proceedings by issuing a Notice to Appear in Philadelphia Immigration Court. Id. at ¶ 33.

To defend against his mother’s removal, Danny filed a second 1-130 Petition (“Danny’s Second Petition”) for Gladys on March 2, 2011. Id. at ¶ 34. USCIS approved this petition mere weeks later, on March 16, 2011. Id. at ¶ 35.

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Bouarfa v. Mayorkas
M.D. Florida, 2022
SILVERBERG v. CITY OF PHILADELPHIA
E.D. Pennsylvania, 2020

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
214 F. Supp. 3d 388, 2016 WL 5939739, 2016 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 141040, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/vargas-v-lynch-paed-2016.