June 2011, Negar Azarfar, Troutman Sanders LLP, Helping Two Young Girls Escape Gang Threats

Negar Azarfar, an associate at Troutman Sanders' Orange County office, always wanted to do pro bono work.  Since law school, Negar envisioned using her degree to help someone in need. 

"Everyone should try to help someone in whatever capacity you are able to," Negar declared. "I never wanted to be a lawyer who had the capacity to help but chose not to," she continued.

Negar didn't have to wait long to work on a pro bono case. She passed the bar in December 2009, and in January of 2010, Negar, along with her colleague Kim Orbeck, volunteered to help two young girls from Central America, who, without their help, would have been forced to navigate complex immigration proceedings without counsel and potentially be forced to return to their home where their lives were in danger. 

The case, which was Negar's first with KIND, involves two sisters, Juanita* (age 13) and Clarissa* (age 10), who were sent to the United States by their parents in an attempt to keep them safe from gangs that had threatened their lives in their hometown. 

Their father, Juan*, co-owned a successful business, and was being extorted to pay monthly "rent" payments to the local gang. The gang is notorious for their extreme acts of violence and extortion of business owners. He initially complied with their demands but then the gang wanted him to pay an exorbitant amount of money, which he did not have. The gang told him that if he did not find a way to pay the money, then Juanita and Clarissa would pay with their lives. Juan and his wife, Carmen*, gathered their daughters and belongings, left their home in the middle of the night, and headed to a relative's home in a town hours away. Juan called his employees at his business the next day and was informed that the gang members had come looking for him. After informing the police about the gang's threats, Juan was told that there was nothing the police could do to protect him and his family, and that he should just "be on guard."

Knowing that the gang also had members in the town in which their relatives lived, and fearing that they would ultimately find their family, Juan and Carmen knew that in order to protect their daughters, they would have to get the girls out of the country. They made the heart-wrenching decision to separate from the girls, believing that doing so would make it easier for their daughters to reach the United States. The girls were transported to the United States by car, while Juan and Carmen attempted to cross the border on foot. Juan and Carmen were caught at the border and deported back to their hometown. Meanwhile, Juanita and Clarissa were apprehended, detained and transported to a detention facility where they remained for almost two months until they were released to their aunt in California. It was at this point that Negar was made aware of their case and knew that she wanted to help the girls. 

Upon hearing the facts of the case, Negar submitted asylum applications for both girls. Initially, the Immigration Court separated the sister's cases. Negar was able to successfully submit a motion for their files to be consolidated in Immigration Court, so that their cases would be heard at one time. Negar also contacted the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service's asylum office to ensure that the sisters would have their asylum interviews scheduled on the same day with the same officer. Negar noted that during the asylum interviews, both girls did a great job explaining their case. Because Juanita is older, she was better able to articulate the reasons that they were forced to leave their home.

In addition to the girls' testimony, the asylum office was given declarations from the girls' parents and other relatives regarding the circumstances surrounding their departure from their hometown. 

Negar was personally touched by this case. Beyond finding it "interesting, challenging and rewarding," she also noted that "this is my chance to help two girls escape a potentially horrible fate." While waiting to hear the outcome of the sisters' asylum application, Negar remains hopeful. "Asylum applications usually are accompanied with very little evidence due to the nature of people abruptly leaving their homes," Negar explained. "However, due to the declarations submitted and the known instances of the gang's extortion in that community and overall country, we have a substantial amount of evidence," Negar stated. 

If Juanita and Clarissa's asylum applications are approved, they will be able to file for green cards in a couple of years, and start their lives anew, safe from the gangs. Like Negar, KIND anxiously awaits the outcome of this case.

*Names changed to protect identities