Today I completed another one of my numerous Kenyan cases at the Anaheim Asylum Office (AO) in Anaheim California. However, I felt terrible for my clients, a wonderful father and daughter, who waited for their interview from 7:00 a.m. until almost noon, when the lead applicant was finally called. The interview then lasted until almost 2:00 p.m.. Unfortunately, this is not unusual for asylum cases in Anaheim (which is the AO for the Los Angeles District).
Applicants attending the AO in the Los Angeles District should be prepared for long waits prior to their asylum and NACARA hearings. They should bring with them reading materials or other diversions (except for i-pods, since they have to listen for their numbers to be called) to help them pass the time and relax prior to their interviews. Otherwise, the nervousness which naturally accompanies such an important and life-changing event can be excruciating. Applicants should also understand that their attorneys have no power over how long the wait will be and must be patient and disciplined in waiting (as my clients were today).
Officers receive their interview files on the morning of the interview, and must prepare for the interview by reviewing the file prior to the interview. If supplementary documents are submitted on the day of the interview, as they often are, the officer would have to review those materials also. Additionally, numerous cases are scheduled by the AO for the same time slot. Hence, where an asylum officer will be interviewing two applicants with 6:30 a.m. appointments, and the first of those interviews takes all morning, the second 6:30 interview would have to be called in the afternoon, or rescheduled for another day. Remember, some officers can take several hours conducting a single interview.
In spite of those blues, I am always honored to serve these very deserving clients and grateful that there is a forum by which they can be heard.
Duane M. Hamilton, Esq.
Thanks very much for the brief. I am one of your clients and that was the best decision I made to hire your firm. To have a man who is good at what he does, more than that, you are a man who is honest and true to a case. if a case is lost, it is not for what you have not done but for what was out of your hand. You and your firm do a very, very good job and for me and many more Kenyans you have represented, I say thank you. Anyone out there who needs a good lawyer these is the firm to hire. I know what some of you might say ooh because he won your case, NO my case is still on going.
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