I'm still in shock over this one... My husband came here with a fiance visa on May 8th of this year. On May 23rd we got married at the courthouse. It was a quick but nice ceremony and we thought everything would be routine (as far as the immigration process) after that. The judge ended up writing the wrong date on the marriage certificate. He submitted it wrong and it was sent back to him. Now you would think a judge would know how to correct a legal document, but he just scratched out the error and wrote in the correct date. It was sent back to him a second time... 5 weeks later we still don't have the marriage certificate. The judge's secretary got very rude with me and told me that he made the corrections and i must deal with the county service center now. So today we went down to the service center and find out that the judge refused to sign the affidavit to legally correct the marriage certificate!!! The lady at the service desk explained that he would not give a reason as to why he would not correct his mistake...just simply refused to do it! So here we have a marriage certificate that is not legal and the judge will not fix his simple mistake. I called his secretary to try and get some clarification as to why he did this, but she was very rude with me and said it was his descision not to correct it. WHY IN THE WORLD WOULD ANYONE DO THIS??? He was very aware that we needed this for immigration. And to make matters worse, he kept the marriage certificate almost a month before deciding not to correct it! The lady at the service center said she has never heard of a judge doing this to anyone before. Now we have a month to get a lawyer and contact immigration to figure out how we can make this legal. AH, it makes me so angry that someone can do this... I can't help but think this a case of prejudice. I wish i wish i wish we would have gotten married at the mosque. I can't believe this judge can knowingly make our lives hell without any explanation.

Is there any law against getting remarried in the mosque? because if he refuses to issue a legal certificate, then there is no proof you were married legally before- -and it's not bigamy because it's the same person.

Please dont say this happened in Ohio ! Ya got me thinking now, A&A.

i'm not seeing anything in the op to indicate it's bias specifically against muslims.

The lady at the courthouse said we are legally married...its just this certificate that will not be legal unless he signs the affidavit. The only way to get it fixed is to petition the cheif judge above him and take legal action. (which sounds like it could take some time) This is what we are going to have to do i guess. It just seems so silly that he is making such a simple thing such a HUGE deal!!

I can't think of any other reason... or maybe he just doesn't like palestinians. Why us specifically?? Heck, if we were two african-americans i bet we could really blow this up.

Sorry for your misfortune, but PLEASE explain what you mean???? If you and hubby were 2 African Americans you could blow it up? Can you inform an African American on how this would come about. We all have misfortunes and the Judge really sucks, but a mess up is a mess up. African Americans DEFINITELY don't get preferential treatment . If you were African American, you would still be in the SAME predicament.

it could be anti-immigrant bias. don't chalk it up so quickly to anti-muslim.

Okay i know what you mean. I just mean that i feel like Muslims get horrible treatment all the time and no one ever says anything about it. (at least where i am from) I am just so frustrated with this judge because i have NO IDEA what his problem is with us and he will not give us any awnsers.

A&A we got married at court too and we are both muslims and have no problems with marriage or court and we married at mosque too so it is not cause u r muslim it might happen to any one

I can definitely understand what you are saying. If you have no resources in your area then maybe its time for you to start some kind of organization or group there.

I would personally keep harrassing the Judge and his secretary until they gave me a specific answer to why he won't change the documentation.

Like CharlesandNessa stated, it may not be anti-muslim. He could truly just be an A@@hole. But that is his problem and not yours. I would either keep calling or try to go over his head and speak to someone else. It was his mistake.

I would seriously consider contacting the local newspaper and get your story along with his name printed in the old black and white.

I am shocked and appalled that this judge would behave so unprofessionally.

I work with lawyers and judges and have done so for **** years. Signing the marriage certificate is often done by a clerk, not the judge, but however it went wrong, the behavior of the jude is EXTREMELY unprofessional. I would contact the county attorney and your legislative rep to get them involved. You need big time help with this. Stubborn judges don't budge without political heat on them.

Is this in Nebraska?
Come to California, they marry everything!!!

everyone. homosexuals are human beings.

maybe the OP just pissed them off and they arent predudiced against anything! except people who piss them off lol.... i have had things get delayed, food spit on, all sorts of things in life due to my rudeness. now i have learned from this and kill them with kindness, even if people are trying my patience

How is it going to help OP?

wont help her after the fact, but if she was rude, which i am not saying for sure that she was, then maybe she will know for next time!

What you need to do is POLITELY make an appointment with your local congressman or rep. POLITELY say "There just must be some simple mistake." Call the office tomorrow and get the paper that frees up the disclosure act ( its like a paper that's a hold harmless for someone to talk to you" Every senator has one. POLITELY talk to the senator and explain it just must be some simple misunderstanding. If you cant get through with them. Go back to the judge's secretary and POLITELY ask what you can do to remedy this. I suspect that somehow you pissed the secretary off. YOU CALLED. Not visited. You need to VISIT and make an in person appointment and BE POLITE. Sometimes in our haste to get things done ( ESPECIALLY IMMIGRATION) we rub people the wrong way. My suggestion is to ask for an appointment with the SECRETARY not the judge and politely ask her in person how you can fix this problem. Calling an attorney is overboard

Wow that is awful. Ahmed and I got married at the courthouse here in Alabama on April 28th 2008 and was given our signed marriage certificate within 5 minutes and got three more certified copies each only cost $3. Then the same minister agreed to do our formal marriage ceremony that we just had on June 28th. I hate to hear you are having such problems. Ask the county courthouse since he wrote the wrong date and refuses to correct it if it makes your marriage invalid and can you just marry again in the courthouse and get a new certificate. It may be faster that way and cheaper than hiring a lawyer and trying to force him to change the date. But it is just my thoughts I am not sure if you can do this or not. I thank God nothing crazy like that happened to us. I wish you the best of luck in resolving this quickly. Also therew has to be someone who can make the judge do what is right. Ask the courthouse who is over the judges...who do they answer to for bad conduct. If all else fails turn to your Senator of your State. Judges have to answer to someone. Maybe he will lose his appointment as a judge if he does not do what he is suppose to. Heck you could even call the local television station and give him some bad publicity and tell what he did and how he refuses to correct it.....it is not slander if it is true. I would send him a certified letter giving him 10 business day to correct the mistake and have a correct marriage certificate delivered back to you or you will go public, contact the senator and whatever state office he answers to. Of course keep a copy for your records. If it is an elected position and he wants reelceted he will not want the people to know how he has behaved. Anyway, just all my opinion here. Good Luck.

Cheryl

Oh geez...........I wasn't even refering to homosexuals.......I was trying to make a joke!!
Like dogs, plants, cats.......anything.........
I have friends that are homosexuals.........sorry you took it the wrong way.

I am DEFINITLY not a rude person like you are. I am actually a very quiet and polite person by nature. lol hubby says i need to do some yelling with these people!

We have requested an appointment with the chief judge for our county. He has the right to override the other judges descision. (which has NO basis) Inshallah, he can get this done fast enough. Everyone seems to be moving soooooo slow here! Otherwise we will just submit the marriage lisence as is (since we are legally married) and just expect an RFE. We will see what happens in the next couple days...our next option may be contacting the local news stations. I'm sure they can get the ball rolling faster than anyone else.

I should clarify I am not rude. I just have had moments of rudeness due to impatience. Thanks.

Be careful not to make a powerful enemy. What happens if you end up in court some day?

what a nightmare! I hope it works out soon!

It is time to get a lawyer. Judges rely on their secretaries to do everything for them and it seems this judge is incompetent.

I think this problem is being taken to far right? I just can't get it in my head that they can actually do this kind of stuff to a person. I don't think it's because of being muslim I think it's because of your spouse wanting to immigrate to USA. Immigrants usually aren't welcomed by alot of people. Especially the economy. That's what I feel at least. Patience is all I can recommend and getting senators involved.

exactly

I like to think positive too. can you not go to a Masjiid???

It doesnt hurt to ask the help of your congressman and/or senator however even this influential people dont have as much pull as we thing they would, I have requested assistance several times from both congressman and senator and both received the same responses from the government, which is we just have to wait it out!