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Lawsuit Filed On Behalf of Domestic Worker Trafficking Victim

By immigrationprof

From APILO:

Lawyers’ Committee, API Legal Outreach and O’Melveny & Myers File Civil Suit on Behalf of Abused Domestic Worker
 
SAN FRANCISCO, CA — Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the San Francisco Bay Area (Lawyers’ Committee), Asian Pacific Islander Legal Outreach (API Legal Outreach), and O’Melveny & Myers LLP filed a civil suit today on behalf of a Chinese woman who was trafficked into the United States and forced into a life of indentured servitude by a Fremont couple under deplorable conditions.
 
The plaintiff, who will be proceeding as a “Jane Doe,” was subject to sleep deprivation, food deprivation, threats of harm towards herself and her family in China, and horrific verbal and physical abuse over the course of more than a year. The family also confiscated her legal documents, prevented her from leaving the home at will, and denied her medical treatment for trauma suffered due to the abuse.

After more than a year of servitude, the plaintiff was able to escape with the aid of a Good Samaritan. The family was prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Northern District of California, and the plaintiff eventually secured a visa to remain in the country. The legal team of Lawyers’ Committee, API Legal Outreach, and O’Melveny & Myers are now assisting her in filing a civil suit seeking compensation for the psychological, emotional, and medical damages she suffered, as well as numerous violations of the California Labor Code.
 
The case is one of many the Lawyers’ Committee and API Legal Outreach have tackled in past years addressing the rights of domestic workers, immigrants, and survivors of human trafficking. “Cases like this are critical in ensuring these issues are taken out of the secrecy of the ‘domestic’ sphere and are squarely addressed as human rights violations,” stated Paul R. Chavez of the Lawyers’ Committee. “Rather than be blamed and treated as criminals, immigrants who are subjected to human trafficking and forced labor deserve full access to the protections accorded to them under the law,” added Cindy Liou of API Legal Outreach. “We believe this civil lawsuit will send the clear message that human trafficking in any form is unacceptable and will not be tolerated,” said Michael Tubach of O’Melveny & Myers.

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