OFF THE WIRE
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Prominent Cleveland immigration lawyer Margaret Wong has sued the federal government over a policy that bans foreign members of the Hells Angels from entering the United States.
Wong and Kentucky lawyer Matthew Robinson are representing the motorcycle club in a lawsuit filed last month in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. The suit says Hells Angels members have been denied travel visas after the Homeland Security and State departments designated the club as a "known criminal organization."
The suit says the blanket designation is unwarranted and violates federal immigration law.
Wong said she could not discuss the case at the request of the Hells Angels. A State Department spokeswoman said the department does not comment on pending litigation.
The Hells Angels have charters in 35 countries, according to the suit. Members have been denied visas to attend a semiannual event called the World Run, which was held last year in New Hampshire. The suit says the club is not a criminal organization and many members have no criminal records.
Cleveland immigration lawyer David Leopold, who is not connected to the case, said he thinks the lawsuit has no merit and the court will dismiss it. He said courts defer to the federal government on whom to keep out of the country, particularly when it relates to national security.
"I'm surprised it's even been brought," said Leopold, an adjunct law professor at Case Western Reserve University and general counsel for the American Immigration Lawyers Association. "I think the courts are going to err on the side of the government's interpretation."
Wong, who came to the United States from Hong Kong, founded Margaret Wong & Associates, a law firm specializing in immigration that has offices in six cities.
http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2012/09/lawyer_here_fighting_for_hells.html