FAMILY COURT DID NOT HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO ORDER THE FINGERPRINTING OF MOTHER SEEKING TO BE APPOINTED GUARDIAN IN THIS SPECIAL IMMIGRANT JUVENILE STATUS PROCEEDING (SECOND DEPT).
The Second Department, reversing Family Court, determined the court did not have the authority to order mother to be fingerprinted in this special immigrant juvenile status (SIJS) proceeding:
… [T]he mother commenced this proceeding to be appointed guardian of the subject child for the purpose of obtaining an order declaring that the child is dependent on the Family Court and making specific findings so as to enable the child to petition the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services for special immigrant juvenile status (hereinafter SIJS) pursuant to 8 USC § 1101(a)(27)(J). Thereafter, the mother moved for the issuance of an order making the requisite declaration and specific findings so as to enable the child to petition for SIJS. The Family Court denied the motion without a hearing and dismissed the guardianship petition for “failure to prosecute” based on the mother’s failure to obtain fingerprinting. The mother appeals.
Since there is no express statutory fingerprinting requirement in a proceeding such as this pursuant to Family Court Act § 661(a) for “[g]uardianship of the person of a minor or infant” … , the Family Court erred in denying the mother’s motion based on her failure to comply with the court’s directive to obtain fingerprinting … . Further, under the circumstances of this case, the court erred in dismissing the petition for “failure to prosecute” based on the mother’s failure to obtain fingerprinting … . Matter of Fermina B. v Rene P., 2017 NY Slip Op 09125, Second Dept 12-27-17
FAMILY LAW (SPECIAL IMMIGRANT JUVENILE STATUS, FINGERPRINTING, FAMILY COURT DID NOT HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO ORDER THE FINGERPRINTING OF MOTHER SEEKING TO BE APPOINTED GUARDIAN IN THIS SPECIAL IMMIGRANT JUVENILE STATUS PROCEEDING (SECOND DEPT))/SPECIAL IMMIGRANT JUVENILE STATE (SIJS) (FAMILY LAW, FINGERPRINTING, FAMILY COURT DID NOT HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO ORDER THE FINGERPRINTING OF MOTHER SEEKING TO BE APPOINTED GUARDIAN IN THIS SPECIAL IMMIGRANT JUVENILE STATUS PROCEEDING (SECOND DEPT))/FINGERPRINTING (FAMILY LAW, SPECIAL IMMIGRANT JUVENILE STATUS, FINGERPRINTING, FAMILY COURT DID NOT HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO ORDER THE FINGERPRINTING OF MOTHER SEEKING TO BE APPOINTED GUARDIAN IN THIS SPECIAL IMMIGRANT JUVENILE STATUS PROCEEDING (SECOND DEPT))/IMMIGRATION (FAMILY LAW, SPECIAL IMMIGRANT JUVENILE STATUS, FINGERPRINTING, FAMILY COURT DID NOT HAVE THE AUTHORITY TO ORDER THE FINGERPRINTING OF MOTHER SEEKING TO BE APPOINTED GUARDIAN IN THIS SPECIAL IMMIGRANT JUVENILE STATUS PROCEEDING (SECOND DEPT))