How many times you were faced with a crime that you never
committed?
You have a great career, you are educated, you are socially
involved in helping others, you’re financially stable and you are young and
would like to start a family. You look, with the help of your family since you
are conservative, for a nice girl that you marry quickly because she was
pressuring you. You have your honey moon in Morocco. You travel with your newly wed in the south, north and the
middle of Morocco. You take her to any nice place you heard of.After your honey moon, you bring her to live
with you in the US because you work in the US, so you brought your beloved wife to live with you after three
weeks of getting married to her.
You lived with her for three months (your wife traveled in the US,
you visited your friends with her on weekends, sometimes friends came to your
house to congratulate you on your marriage, you purchased tickets to go to the
hajj (Saudi Arabia) with your wife) and suddenly your life completely changed.
You are accused of a criminal act: kidnapping your wife & having sex with
her against her will, facing 20 years in prison in the US and your wife is expecting a child. By the way, you are not a US citizen or a green card holder. You were in the state just to
study and then work (H1 visa). You end up been out of work, you need someone to
support you financially; you need to raise a bail of $150,000 and facing a
trial where the only witness against your words is your wife's. You are a
Muslim, you have a bear and you practice Islam in the US and you do not deny that! You are facing a jury of 12 American
citizens to prove that you did not kidnap your wife, that other Muslim people
sow her going out of the house that are all Muslim females wearing hijjab and most
of them not speaking English well enough.
Now, your ex-wife (you did go through Moroccan legal system and
got the divorce after one year) is the victim in the US system because she was the first to call the police. She gets to
get a green card, a financial support from the government and many other
associations that offers help to the victims. In the other side, you are the
criminal, although you don’t have the mean to hire an attorney; you can’t get
one for free.
You went through the first family court in front of the judge; you
prove that you are innocent. She files for appeal. She gets a free attorney who
does all the work and you can’t have access to an attorney because you are the
criminal. You have to struggle and become an attorney to represent yourself in
the appeal court…
At the same time you still have to go through the criminal court
and prove that you are innocent. The trial is set for January 2010. You have to
prove to 12 juries that you, the Muslim man, did not kidnap your wife!!
This is a real story that
is going on right now in the US courts.
ahmed in la : There are many things I would do and many I would not.
I would listen to myself, act and react to the best of my abilities, based on what I experienced and lived.
I would consider advice from others if it does not interfere with my own rational.
I would call my local attorney bar association and ask for a certified family law attorney and workout a payment plan.
I would ask if I could use a court appointed attorney for my criminal case and I would convince myself that I should not be too hopeful about him or her doing a very good job!
I would kiss my witnesses feet to come to court and I would gather enough information on how to subpoena them successfully. Merely asking them, nicely, to come to court might not work!
I would not count on any Muslims to sit among the jury; I should expect to be on my own on that one!
If I m a conservative person, dress and all, this would be the time to shave my beard and moustache to give TTOUNI back and to adopt, although temporarily, a western look and dress code.
I would review laws governing my temporary visa status and I would seek employment based on whether my social security and my employement-related authorization allow.
I would seek an immigration attorney known for getting results and I would make clear to him or her that I want to stay and work in the U.S. I would trust his or her opinion on the subject.
In regards to your divorce case, you should expect the matters of legal custody, physical custody, spousal support, child support, visitation, alamony, spousal attorneys fees, property division, family debt, court fees and other issues to be dealt with in U.S. court and you should be pshyced up to deal with them. Your ability to pay will, likely, depend on your ability to earn and your past earnings.
I would expect some Moroccan court rulings to be adopted by U.S. courts, just as I would expect the opposit.
I would look for father support groups for help and I would not be too hopeful about the extent of assistance I expect to receive.
If it come to it, there would likely be help for appeals, although I would not be too hopeful about the appeal process itself.
I would consider packing up and taking the first train into Mexico, than the next plain to morocco, but i would run the risk of jumping bail, if i m not already incarcerated! Mexican planes to Europe have a lay over in New York, anyway! Brazil has removed visa requirements for Moroccans!!!!! Buenos Aires-Casa or Lisbon!!!
I would not count on Muslim attorneys in the west to help! Being Muslim is not enough for many Muslim professionals to act on behalf of other Muslims. Remember, we are not Jewish, Catholic or Christians.
I would welcome myself, partially, to Ahmed in L.A. s world.
Good luck.
abdelnyc : there are many facts missing in your story, first, how old is his ex-wife? how long they have been married? and under which status he brought her to the states? it doesn't make any sence that a wife will throw the father of her kid under the bus just for a green card. many men look for a wife in morocco, bring her here and abuse her, thinking that by locking her home they can get away with it. the justice system in this country is based on facts and proofs. we should hear her side of the story as well, and l am sure if he is innocent he won't be judged based on his religion or background. unfortunetly, it's our fault that we do things and claim that our religion allow us to do so.
all l can say is "allah idir li tawil del khir". the best way to get out of this is to try to work things between him and his wife through family and friends and try to have her drop the case. after all, that's the best for them and their kid.
saramay123 : Posting a bail that high sounds a little more complicated than "he said... she said". She must have more evidence of the so called abuse. We aren't sure if she had a court order of protection against the husband and he violated it...? that would have given her more rights and proved her case...we don't know the details.
I don't know what he wants to accomplish? establish his innocence, get back his job, clean up his criminal records for future adjustment of his immigration status...?
He is not in a good status legaly, he's most likely to face charges, or spend thousands of $ which he doesn't have. His H1 visa is conditioned (with his job) and temporary.
He'll be more likely to serve jail time and be deported.
If he negociates a deal with the prosecution he might leave without serving jail.
Ahmed made some valuable suggestions.
Domestic violence is a big thing now used and abused by both men and women, by the Americans and the foreigners. Religion has nothing to do with it, it's just the law of the land (constitution)
Walking away might be the smartest thing for him, he still has a chance with the Moroccan judicial system concerening his child and visitation rights.
Best of luck!
mlk1hxr : Dear all,
I have been in Morocco this summer and met some people from different woman’s associations in Europe. Particularly I remember one lady from Italy; she was telling the crowd stories about women (Moroccan’s) hitting themselves and calling the police for their Husbands (Moroccan men). I wonder if there is any statistics about those cases.
I also heard almost same story from some person who lived in Belgium, in his case, the wife was the one who brought him to Europe and when she wanted a divorce and he refused, she destroyed all the house and call in the police on him.
In addition, one story that just ended in Boston few weeks ago, he was Moroccan marrying and American lady. After they separated, she went to the police and said that he came to her house and threatened her while he was in his sister house sleeping.
I wonder how many other men have experienced the same situation in the US. We need to come up with some statistics.
Although I don’t believe in stereotyping but there is a trend of Moroccan women acting smart and getting through the system. Because of the internet and cell phones people now can access information easily and use it in their favor.
This case is not typical because two things:
First, there are two different courts involved in this case: criminal & civil, so, you have to be careful in dealing with them. You probably need to hire two different attorneys and you have deadlines to meet. So be careful.
Second, if green card is in the play, I don’t think this will be an easy case to win. Only pray that Allah will save you. It is hard to prove things that happened between a man and a woman, only Allah SWT knows.
Third, Islam is not a bad thing, but can play against you at times. But remember that Allah SWT is testing you. You will need to win the test! Whether you end up in jail or out of it, you need to be patient. If you were planning to take your wife to Hajj and never intended to harm her, then you should accept your destiny no matter what it will be!
Going to Morocco (Mexico or Brasil)won’t help you, although everyone is saying that and it may make sense to some. They will get you from there! It will make you look as a real criminal even if you did not do anything. You should be patient and try your best. Whatever comes to you plate, be grateful for it. It could have been worst.
Allah Moueene!
okay : I am not surprised by this article, Moroccan women that live in the USA can do even worse than this.....
america120 :
It could also be a case when this man brought his wife to the Us and wanted her to become a good "obedient Muslim "wife .
She turned him down and things went downhil after that.Too many Moroccans bring wives to the Us and think they should worship them.Violence is very common in those cases.I do hope this guy is innocent .150000$ bail is kind of stiff for a mere disagreement.He should contact a bondsman and also go back to court and ask for a lower bail.he could also conatct his in laws in Morocco and see if their daughter will dropthe charges all together.
It is a real sad story ,however the husband has done something very wrong here for this to happen.
nadiacal : salam,
I think we have to hear both sides versions to make a comment, I'm not surprised too, from this woman reaction it's true she can do worse but I'm wondering what did the guy did to let her act like this especially that they have kids,
cervantes : READ THE QORAN!"Surat Yousef" in particular. You will see more clearly afterwards.
Best wishes to all of you especially, the innocent baby involved.
bennani_lamyae : Dear Brother
May God be with you .I can imagine your feeling right now .Please brother be proud of yourself if you are really innocent God is watching you and will find a way to prove your innocence .ÞóÇáó Åöäøöí áóíóÍúÒõäõäöí Ãóäú ÊóÐúåóÈõæÇ Èöåö æóÃóÎóÇÝõ Ãóäú íóÃúßõáóåõ ÇáÐøöÆúÈõ æóÃóäúÊõãú Úóäúåõ ÛóÇÝöáõæäó.keep reading the Curran as much as you can.For the green card it won't be that easy for you to get it if you played guilty .About your ex wife she forgot about her duties towards you.Anway i can't judge her until she prove why she did all this to you .just to let you know that There is nothing to be a shame of because the insured injured"ÇáãÄãä ãÕÇÈ"
Good luck to you my dear
sueRabat : Salamu ALeycum.
First of all, in the USA, and be smart about this, the State Attorney is the one who has the burden of PROOF.
Second, if you cannot afford an Attorney, you should ask for one at the STATE EXPENSE. Eventually in a case where the bail is set at $150,000, you should be able to ask for a Defense Lawyer and ask for a speedy and fair trial.
Finally, You must TRUST ALLAH SWT to vindicate you.
So, be patient, rely on Allah swt and go on with your life. Insha allah He will bring HAQ to the Table.
Salamu Aleycum
sueRabat : OKAY >>>> your comment is an insult 2 Moroccan Women in the US. We don't know all the details. Marital problems happen to everybody, no one is 100% innocent.
ADVICE: Never judge people/cases unless you know all the details.
Those who get married to any1, moroccan or not, especially the men, please decide which side of the token you want, the US style of life or the Islamic way. I talk to dozens of Moroccans, & I see time & Again the twisted mind some men have. They literally practice the idiom "What's Good for the Goose Is Not Good for the Gander."
So, plz study yourself, your religion, your culture well before imposing some sick rules on your wives.
Also, think about your kids, who is going to be their uncle, aunt, future,......etc. Good luck all & Salame
nadiacal : Salam,
TO SueRabat,
I agree 100% with what you wrote, because you never know what happen between a husband and a wife, everyone say, what he want, so it's better not the judge, I hope that they will free the guy but it's like every if I can say crime, if he did something wrong he has t get punished and if his wife lied about the whole tthing, (la roue elle tourne) she will get what she deserve, I went through something bad when I use to live in the US, mais la roue a vite tourne, et dieu merci et merci
sueRabat : Salame All,
Nadiacal, I am glad things turn well for you sister. It is said, Allah youmhil wa la youhmil.
To the gentlman with the problem, I hope he would revise himself in this Eid Al Adha, and try to simply do the right thing.
Eid Mubarak All & Salame Aleycum
26November,2009
ahmed in la : Could you please give us an update on the situation?
sueRabat : Salamu Aleycum. Ahmed in LA, looooooooool you are so curious. By the way, Thank you for the note on the other Article about Mrs Hajji.
Marriage is great, but if it does not work, divorce is the best. One should throw a party after they get a divorce from a nasty spouse. Call me I will plan it for you. naaah, just kidding .. loooooool, but hey, if you can't Enjoy your marriage, then try to enjoy being divorced at least.
12/17/2009
ajrida : The first thing I would do is find out whom she was befriending because most of the time the mess comes from the outsiders. Someone might have turned her against her husband for the sake of a green card. Allah will reveal the truth and if the truth is not revealed and the wife is "Dalma", she won't be happy in her life. She will keep thinking about her betrayal forever.
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