Sunday, April 22, 2007 

Illegal Immigrant Amnesty Fraud in New Jersey

Lawyer lied to government to help hundreds of illegal aliens

Jonathan Saint Preux, an attorney specializing in immigration law, has pleaded guilty to falsely representing that his clients had lived unlawfully in the United States before 1982 so that they could qualify for legal residency under a 1986 federal illegal alien amnesty program. Preux admitted that the scheme which ran from 2004 to February 2006 brought his Irvington law office hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Saint Preux, 44, of South Orange, is the third person to plead guilty in the case. His wife, Michele Saint Preux, 40, who was his office manager; and Bharat Kotak, 56, of Iselin, who referred illegal immigrants to the firm, have also pleaded guilty. They remain free pending sentencing. Immigration fraud carries up to 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. A fourth defendant, Naranjan Patel, 47, of South Plainfield, pleaded not guilty and is scheduled for trial in June.

The scheme involved the fraudulent preparation and filing of at least 800 fraudulent Applications for Status as a Temporary Resident (Forms I-687), and other immigration documents. An I-687 is a petition for an alien to become a lawful resident in the United States.

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Saturday, April 21, 2007 

New Jersey Civil Unions

Civil-union applicants jump 62 pct. but N.J. law is called flawed by gays

After a landmark lawsuit in which seven same-sex couples argued they had the right to marry, the New Jersey Supreme Court unanimously ruled in October that same-sex couples should be granted all the rights and responsibilities of married couples, but left it to the Legislature to determine the nomenclature for the unions. New Jersey’s legislature, controlled by Democrats, opted for the term “civil union”.

Since Feb. 19, when the law creating civil unions went into effect, local registrars have reported 339 female couples and 236 male couples have applied, for a total of 575 couples. Steven Goldstein, head of the gay-rights group Garden State Equality, blames the low number of applications on the Legislature’s choice of the term civil union over marriage.

Goldstein is probably partially correct in his assessment. A New Jersey civil union imposes major financial obligations, but provides few tangible benefits beyond access to a partner’s healthcare benefits. Many have their own insurance or work for one of the numerous private and public employers already offering healthcare insurance to domestic partners. Most other “rights” can be achieved through a contract, a living and regular will, financial and healthcare Powers of Attorney.

It’s not surprising so few couples are bothering to take advantage of the new law. The financial impetus to apply for a same-sex union just isn’t there, especially because the benefits are confined to New Jersey and that’s true whether it’s called a civil union or a marriage. It’s federal recognition of a union that confers significant benefits, from inheritance tax breaks to pension rights.

That’s Goldstein’s real goal - a state marriage law that can be leveraged in federal courts to achieve a national right to gay marriage. Same-sex couples “married” under a New Jersey law would be able to sue in federal court, arguing that the federal definition of marriage in DOMA is unconstitutional as a matter of federal equal protection and substantive due process.

This is why Goldstein is working so hard to have the term changed in New Jersey’s law from civil union to marriage. It’s the necessary next step. He’ll continue pressuring state lawmakers to make the change and if that effort fails, the backup plan is already in place. He’s preparing for a trip back to the New Jersey Supreme Court for a same-sex marriage edict based on real or imagined instances where civil unions are not being acknowledged on a par with marriage.

Goldstein does a great job of keeping his name and the gay marriage issue in the news. His success is truly amazing considering the tiny constituency for gay marriage.

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