Page:United States Statutes at Large Volume 114 Part 2.djvu/782

 114 STAT. 1518 PUBLIC LAW 106-386—OCT. 28, 2000 Battered TITLE V—BATTERED IMMIGRANT wSr' , WOMEN Protection Act of 8 USC 1101 note. SEC.1501. SHORT TITLE. This title may be cited as the "Battered Immigrant Women Protection Act of 2000". 8 USC 1101 note. SEC. 1502. FINDINGS AND PURPOSES. (a) FINDINGS,—Congress finds that— (1) the goal of the immigration protections for battered immigrants included in the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 was to remove immigration laws as a barrier that kept battered immigrant women and children locked in abusive relationships; (2) providing battered immigrant women and children who were experiencing domestic violence at home with protection against deportation allows them to obtain protection orders against their abusers and frees them to cooperate with law enforcement and prosecutors in criminal cases brought against their abusers and the abusers of their children without fearing that the abuser will retaliate by withdrawing or threatening withdrawal of access to an immigration benefit under the abuser's control; and (3) there are several groups of battered immigrant women and children who do not have access to the immigration protections of the Violence Against Women Act of 1994 which means that their abusers are virtually immune from prosecution because their victims can be deported as a result of action by their abusers and the Immigration and Naturalization Service cannot offer them protection no matter how compelling their case under existing law. (b) PURPOSES.— The purposes of this title are— (1) to remove barriers to criminal prosecutions of persons who commit acts of battery or extreme cruelty against immigrant women and children; and (2) to offer protection against domestic violence occurring in family and intimate relationships that are covered in State and tribal protection orders, domestic violence, and family law statutes. SEC. 1503. IMPROVED ACCESS TO IMMIGRATION PROTECTIONS OF THE VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN ACT OF 1994 FOR BATTERED IMMIGRANT WOMEN. (a) INTENDED SPOUSE DEFINED.— Section 101(a) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101(a)) is amended by adding at the end the following: "(50) The term 'intended spouse' means any alien who meets the criteria set forth in section 204(a)(l)(A)(iii)(II)(aa)(BB), 204(a)(l)(B)(ii)(II)(aa)(BB), or 240A(b)(2)(A)(i)(III).". (b) IMMEDIATE RELATIVE STATUS FOR SELF-PETITIONERS MAR- RIED TO U.S. CITIZENS. — (1) SELF-PETITIONING SPOUSES.— (A) BATTERY OR CRUELTY TO ALIEN OR ALIEN'S CHILD.— Section 204(a)(l)(A)(iii) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1154(a)(l)(A)(iii)) is amended to read as follows:

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