An Alabama family is at the center of a legal effort to address delays in a federal program for immigrants who help law enforcement solve crimes.
In June 2019, Leonor Reyna Martinez Flores applied for a U visa, a special program for crime victims who cooperate with law enforcement. She filed a federal lawsuit this week alleging her due process rights have been violated because of widespread processing delays with the program.
"My children and grandchildren, all of whom are U.S. citizens, live with anxiety and fear. They worry that one day they will receive a call that I have been detained or deported," Flores said in a statement in the lawsuit.
Flores is a Mexican citizen who has lived in Alabama since 1996. In 2005, Flores was making dinner, and her children were playing in the living room when they heard a knock at the door. Moments later, bullets entered the home. Outside, on the porch, lay a woman who had been shot by her partner who she was fleeing, according to a lawsuit filed in federal court this week.
The U visa program is intended for immigrants who are victims of significant crimes and who help law enforcement. Congress created it in 2000 as part of the Victims of Trafficking and Violence Protection Act to incentivize victims who are not citizens to cooperate with law enforcement. Each year, 10,000 U visas are issued.
The lawsuit claims that U visa decisions have been delayed for years. In 2024, the average processing time for petitions was 46.1 months.
In her complaint, Flores says that nearly six years of wait time is an unreasonable delay and that petitions should be resolved within 180 days.
"The combined effects of this violent incident and the prolonged uncertainty of her immigration status have caused Plaintiff ongoing stress, anxiety, and emotional distress," a filing in the lawsuit stated.
The attorney for Flores did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
"The efficacy of the U visa program is contingent upon the timely provision of protection. If a noncitizen victim remains in legal limbo for an extended period of time after reporting a crime, this delay ultimately undermines the program’s intended purpose," the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit, filed on June 9 in the Northern District of Alabama, claims that she is entitled to a decision on her U visa application or to be placed on the waiting list. She alleges that her due process rights have been violated. The lawsuit was filed against the heads of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Kristi Noem and Kira Scott, as well as Pam Bondi, the Attorney General.
A spokesperson for USCIS declined to comment. A spokesperson for the department said it does not comment on pending litigation. Bondi’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Flores's spouse, Avismael Espinoza Baldovinos, also Mexican, is eligible to apply because of his relationship to Flores. He submitted his application in September of 2023 and is also a plaintiff in the lawsuit.
According to the lawsuit, in 2023, USCIS informed Flores and her husband that their visa petitions were found to be "bona fide," which is an interim approval. They have not yet received a final decision on their cases.
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