CBA Record October 2016

39 / 60

PRO BONOWEEK 2016–CARING, ONE PERSON AT A TIME
CBA RECORD 39
Mohammed
By Sherene A. Jodrey
Afew years ago, I represented Moham-
med in his application for asylum.
Mohammed was an Iraqi paramedic during
the height of the war in Iraq. He and his
family were brought to the United States at
the request of the U.S. government to tes-
tify as a witness in a brutal crime involving
an American soldier and a young Iraqi girl.
Mohammed spoke no English, had never
been to the United States before, and knew
the consequences of being perceived as col-
laborating with the American government.
But in the interests of justice, he agreed to
testify. Back home, he was branded as a
traitor. If Mohammed, his wife, and young
children had returned to a war-torn Iraq,
where translators and other civilians who
assisted the U.S. army and government
were routinely being murdered and tor-
tured, he likely would not have survived.
Securing asylum for Mohammed and
his family was one of the most reward-
ing and emotional experiences of my life.
Mohammed had faced so many battles
and difficult circumstances. His life in Iraq
was centered around treating the sick and
wounded victims of war, and providing for
his wife and kids in a country wracked by
conflict and violence. Even after we won
his right to asylum, his life continued to
be hard. He had to find a job to support
his family without the ability to speak
English or license to practice medicine. His
children had to attend school and learn and
make friends in a language they did not
speak. Like so many new immigrants to
this country, Mohammed and his family
struggled mightily to start building a new
life. But at least they were safe. I was, and
continue to be, honored and fortunate to
have had the opportunity to help Moham-
med and his family secure some measure
of safety.
Explaining a Child’s Unfortunate
Death
By Jenny Austin, with Jonathon Hitz, Bryan
Koorstad, and Jonathan Welbel
When we met our client, it had been
three years since her son died. At
that time, the Department of Children
and Family Services (DCFS) had alleged
that she had negligently contributed to
the death of her son. We quickly devel-
oped a plan to better understand the
circumstances behind the tragic death
of a 3-year old child and to provide the
best legal representation for our client. It
was evident from that first meeting that
our client was still grieving, and her grief
was compounded by the allegations that
she had played a role in her son’s death.
Without help, she had little chance of
defending herself.
It was Super Bowl Sunday when our
client took her 3-year old son to her boy-
friend’s house. While her boyfriend was out
of the house, and after her son had gone to
bed, she heard a noise from the bedroom.
She went to check on her son, only to find
him unresponsive. She performed CPR,
but there was no response. She called her
boyfriend, who was minutes away. As soon
as he arrived, they rushed to the emergency
room. Despite resuscitation efforts, the
child was pronounced dead. Cell phone
and hospital records showed that only
8 minutes elapsed from when our client
called her boyfriend to when they arrived
at the emergency room.
A critical part of our factual investi-
gation was to try to determine how the
3-year old boy died. We hired two medical
experts–a pathologist and a pediatric cardi-
ologist. Based on the medical evidence, we
learned that the child had an undiagnosed
Sherene A. Jodrey is Assistant General Coun-
sel at Aon Corporation
heart condition. Further, any injuries on
his body were consistent with the child’s
medical history and the resuscitation
efforts conducted in the emergency room
on the night of his death. We presented
the facts and the expert’s opinions to the
administrative law judge at a hearing. In
doing so, we were also able to explain that
our client was a loving mother who did her
best for her child until his very last day.
Perhaps even more importantly, we were
able to explain to our client that the death
of her son was not her fault.
About a month after the hearing, we
received a decision from the administrative
law judge clearing our client’s name. We
immediately called her with the news, and
after a brief pause, noticed a sudden change
in her voice. We could hear the relief as she
thanked us, and we promised to stay in
touch. About a week later, we were walking
down the street when suddenly we saw a
familiar face. It was our client with, for the
first time, a big smile on her face and hug
for each of us. We feel very grateful for the
opportunity to have made the impact that
was so evident that day.
Jenny Austin is a Partner in the Global Tax
Practice Group at Baker & McKenzie LLP