Any domestic violence victim who goes to court for a restraining order against her batterer is in a dangerous situation, and victims who also happen to be immigrants have even more at risk, especially if they are depending on an abusive spouse to obtain legal residency. The last thing a woman in this position needs is to be threatened with deportation by the court she turns to for help. But this is exactly what happened to Aurora Gonzalez when she entered the courtroom of Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Pro Tem Bruce Fink on July 14.
As reported in the Los Angeles Times, Ms. Gonzalez, who had moved into a domestic violence shelter, went to court for protection from the abuse of her husband. Judge Fink’s response? He asked if she was a legal immigrant, and when she said no, he warned her to either leave his courtroom by the time he counted to 20 or risk arrest and deportation to Mexico. Then he started counting! Ms. Gonzalez left the courtroom and her case was dismissed. Two days later, the LA Times – noting that experts said Fink had no authority as a state judge to order an arrest for violation of federal immigration law -- reported that Fink, a family law attorney, was dropped from the roster of lawyers who can be used as substitute judges. Fink has not acknowledged that he did anything wrong and said that all he “saw was nothing more than some yelling and screaming between a husband and wife…[and] that they really didn’t want to not be together anymore.” Thankfully, Aurora Gonzalez resubmitted her request for a restraining order and it was granted.
