A judge has ordered the Unites State government to produce some background check documents on a blind Jordanian immigrant who has been fighting for years to become a U.S. citizen. The ruling could lead to a final decision in the case.
It’s the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s name check of Zuhair Mahd, who sued the government, that’s in question. The government said it performed the check before rejecting the man’s application for citizenship, but the court said it wants proof the FBI check actually happened. The court wants to know the results of that check within 10 days.
“In a lot of countries, I can’t go to court because I’m not a lawyer or a citizen,” Mahd said. “And I’m neither a lawyer, nor a citizen.”
He’s been pushing since 2004 when he passed the citizenship test and needed only to complete the FBI background check, and then he waited and waited, long past the 120 day deadline laid out in federal law.
Mahd finally pursued the matter himself in court, filing his own lawsuit and acting as his own attorney. He readily admitted he’s not a lawyer.
“I’m confident that when you’re in the right, when you have the law and justice on your side, you will win,” Mahd said. “It doesn’t matter if you have an attorney or not. It doesn’t matter if you’re a small guy or a big guy.”
The blind Jordanian of Palestinian heritage has a firm belief in his abilities. He runs a computer consulting business helping blind people use technology. He figures if he’s smart enough to do that, he’s smart enough to make his case in court.
Surprisingly, Mahd has already won the first two rounds, and Friday a federal judge criticized the U.S. Attorney’s Office for failing to provide documents about Mahd’s FBI background check; specifically whether he passed or failed.
“I’ve done a lot of research and I think the facts and the law are on my side,” Mahd said. “So I’m nervous, but I’m not worried.”
Since the last court hearing in March, the federal government rejected Mahd’s citizenship application in part because he failed to agree to follow up interviews. Mahd argued that he had already given the interviews he was required to give under federal law.
Regarding the FBI check, U.S. Attorney Troy Eid released a short statement that said, “We are confident that the FBI completed the name check within the time frame mandated by the court and we look forward to proving this fact to the judge.”
Mahd first came to the U.S. as a teenager. He’s been living and working in America for 17 years.
