Periodically, I open the following blogs open to new
contributors. If you are interested,
send me an email at raymond@hitechcj.com
Stay Safe!
REF
Saturday, April 18, 2020
Wednesday, April 08, 2020
We’re Americans. We’ll beat this.
It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was
the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness….” This is not just the first line of the novel,
Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens, it is a good description of our current
times.
The “worst” of times is easily understood. Anytime the word “pandemic” is used in
everyday conversation, it is a concern.
Disbelief remains the most common reaction to what we have all been
going through. The current pandemic is a
generational changing event that we won’t forget but from which we will
hopefully learn a great deal and be better and more prepared in the future
because of it.
The “best” of times can also be seen, if you choose to
look. Families are spending more time
together. We are concerned for each
other. We are helping each other. We are learning to appreciate the little
things, and even more importantly, we are appreciating people who we often
overlook during other “normal” times.
We now see how critically we depend on our health care workers. They are devoted, brave and inspirational
people. I expect we will have a new
appreciation for them if we don’t already.
In my role as the chief federal law enforcement officer for the Northern
District of West Virginia, I get the privilege of working with first
responders, particularly law enforcement.
Those individuals are still out there every day, every hour, and every
minute. Our heroes are not on television
shows or sporting events. Our heroes are
in our communities protecting us, feeding and teaching our kids, stocking our
grocery shelves, and assuring our basic services remain intact.
I live in Berkeley County, which is one of the more heavily
affected counties in our state. Yet, on
my few trips to my grocery store, there was no panic. People were staying apart. There was genuine concern and kindness being
exhibited. I was encouraged by what I
saw.
I am blessed to work with amazing professionals. There will still be prosecutions, arrests,
and court proceedings, albeit under different conditions. We are on the lookout for those trying to
take advantage of the public through fraud.
We are seeing evidence of fraud in West Virginia and we have joined forces
with our state and federal colleagues to find it, stop it, and prosecute
it. Crisis always attracts those who
prey on the anxiety and fear of others.
But, we need your help. The
public needs to report individuals trying to price gouge, those promising early
government checks or the “magical” cure for the virus to law enforcement.
If you think you are a victim of a scam or attempted fraud
involving COVID-19, contact the National Center for Disaster Fraud Hotline at
866-720-5721 or via email at disaster@leo.gov
I am confident that we will come through this crisis stronger
than we were, more appreciative than we were, and closer than we were. We live in the greatest of countries and our
history has demonstrated time and again that we will rise to the occasion and
be better for it.
-U.S. Attorney Bill Powell, Northern District of West
Virginia
Tuesday, March 17, 2020
USCIS Temporarily Closing Offices to the Public March 18-April 1
Effective March 18, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services is suspending in-person services at its field offices, asylum offices and Application Support Centers (ASCs) to help slow the spread of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19). This suspension of services will be effective until at least April 1. In the meantime, USCIS will provide limited emergency services. Please call the Contact Center for assistance with emergency services.
USCIS field offices will send notices to applicants and petitioners with scheduled appointments and naturalization ceremonies impacted by this closure. USCIS asylum offices will send interview cancellation notices and automatically reschedule asylum interviews. When the interview is rescheduled, asylum applicants will receive a new interview notice with the new time, date and location of the interview. When USCIS again resumes normal operations, USCIS will automatically reschedule ASC appointments due to the office closure. You will receive a new appointment letter in the mail. Individuals who had InfoPass or other appointments must reschedule through the USCIS Contact Center once field offices are open to the public again. Please check to see if your field office has been reopened before reaching out to the USCIS Contact Center.
Education and precautions are the strongest tools against infection. Get the latest facts by visiting the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s COVID-19 website. Continue to practice good health habits, refrain from handshakes or hugs as greetings, and wash hands and clean surfaces appropriately.
USCIS will provide further updates as the situation develops and will continue to follow CDC guidance. Please also visit uscis.gov/coronavirus for updates.
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