May 9, 1997
SAN FRANCISCO, CA -- Judge H. Jere Armstrong will give the oath of office today to three new Immigration Judges in an investiture ceremony at 2 p.m. in the Ceremonial Courtroom, United States Immigration Court, 550 Kearny Street, Suite 700, San Francisco, CA. Miriam R. Hayward, Laura L. Ramirez, and Marilyn J. Teeter join the ranks of over 200 Immigration Court Judges located in more than 40 Immigration Courts throughout the nation.
Immigration Judges are responsible for conducting formal administrative proceedings, and act independently in their decision-making capacity. Immigration Judges preside over more than 200,000 formal, judicial removal proceedings each year. These decisions are administratively final unless appealed or certified to the Board of Immigration Appeals. In addition to determining whether individuals are admissible or removable, Immigration Judges have jurisdiction to consider applications for various forms of relief from removal. These include applications for such relief as asylum, adjustment of status, cancellation of removal, waivers of inadmissibility, custody/bond redeterminations, and administering oaths of citizenship to naturalization applicants.
Judge Hayward was appointed Immigration Judge in March 1997. She received her B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley in 1976, and her J.D. from the University of California, Boalt Hall School of Law, in 1980. From 1981 to 1982, Judge Hayward worked as an Associate Attorney with the Law Office of Marc Van Der Hout in San Francisco. She worked as a Supervising Attorney at the International Institute of the East Bay in Oakland, California, from 1982 to 1997. Judge Hayward has also served as a Lecturer/Refugee Law Clinic Supervisor at the University of San Francisco School of Law in 1995, and as a Lecturer/Immigration Law Clinic Supervisor at the University of California, Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law from 1993 to 1996. She is a member of the California Bar.
Judge Ramirez was appointed Immigration Judge in March 1997. She received her undergraduate degree from Harvard University in 1982, and her law degree from the University of California, Berkeley in 1985. In 1985, Judge Ramirez worked as a Research Assistant focusing on asylum for Professor Carolyn Blum at the University of California, Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law. She also served as Asylum Program Coordinator, San Francisco Lawyers Committee, from 1985 to 1986. Judge Ramirez worked as Regional Coordinator, Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc., in San Francisco from 1987 to 1994. From 1994 to 1997, she was Supervising Attorney and Adjunct Professor at Santa Clara University, School of Law, in Santa Clara, California. Judge Ramirez is a member of both the California and Illinois Bars.
Judge Teeter was appointed Immigration Judge in March 1997. She received her B.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in 1974, and her J.D. from Golden Gate University School of Law in 1977. Judge Teeter served as an Administrative Judge with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in San Francisco from 1978 to 1997. From 1990 to 1991, she also served as a Traffic Commissioner and Small Claims Court Judge pro tem for San Francisco and San Mateo Counties. From 1977 to 1978, Judge Teeter worked as a trial attorney with the EEOC. She is a lifetime member of the National Association of Woman Judges and is a member of the California Bar.