Judge says woman lacks good character

Mazenah Daud Baraz was acquitted of killing a toddler left in her care at her home day-care facility in Elmhurst.

Nonetheless, five years later, the girl's tragic death has come back to haunt her.

The 65-year-old grandmother has been in a Kenosha County jail since March 6, awaiting deportation to her native Malaysia.

Federal immigration authorities characterize Baraz as an illegal fugitive with a questionable "moral character."

But her attorney and supporters are fighting hard to keep Baraz in the U.S. -- her home of nearly two decades.

Baraz's daughter, Rita Mazlan, said her mother is feeling defeated after seven weeks of incarceration but is trying to remain strong.

"It's been really tough," said Mazlan, who lives in San Francisco. "It's like a big puzzle that needs to be put together. My initial thought was, 'This must be some sort of misunderstanding.' "

The murder case

A DuPage County judge cited uncertain medical evidence Feb. 6, 2003, in acquitting Baraz of the Oct. 3, 1998, death of 15-month-old Gabriella Elise Manzardo.

The ruling in the shaken-baby case ended an emotional trial in which 12 medical experts offered conflicting opinions that, in the judge's mind, left too much doubt to find Baraz guilty of murder.

Robert and Laurie Manzardo, who now live in Naperville with their four sons, all born after their sister's death, remain steadfast in their belief that Baraz got away with murder. They urged her deportation.

"I feel she's abused her right to remain in our country," Laurie Manzardo said. "That's a liberty she does not deserve."

An immigration judge considered Manzardo's January 2006 letter in denying Baraz a reprieve from deportation. As evidence that she bore some culpability for the infant's death, the judge also cited a $630,000 settlement her insurer later reached with the toddler's parents.

Baraz called 911 at 2:06 p.m. Sept. 30, 1998, reporting Gabriella suffered a fever seizure. The child died three days later without regaining consciousness.

Fourteen months later, prosecutors charged Baraz with shaking Gabriella so violently she suffered a skull fracture and severe brain injuries. The injuries were so brutal that some prosecution medical experts compared it to the effects of a 50 mph car crash or four-story fall.

They said Gabriella's symptoms would have appeared within minutes of her injury, meaning they believed Baraz was to blame.

That day, Baraz also was caring for six other children, five of whom were younger than 2. Prosecutors said she snapped, especially considering Gabriella was teething and feverish. They contend Gabriella, as well as other children, suffered previous injuries while in Baraz's care that were never explained.

Baraz's attorney Terry Ekl, though, argued the child was injured before being dropped off. His experts cited the presence of blood found in her brain that may have been up to seven days old.

One defense expert said the injury was a "progressive, evolutionary process." Another found Gabriella suffered a blow to the head, rather than being shaken. She didn't have visible bruises or bumps, Ekl noted, to support his theory of an old injury.

At issue, the judge said, was pinpointing when Gabriella was injured. On that, the experts couldn't agree. So, the judge said he had to acquit.

Afterward, Baraz told reporters she just wanted to get on with her life. But the court victory proved short-lived.

An explored life

Rita Mazlan says her mother always has been fiercely independent -- contrary to her generation of women in Malaysia.

As a teen, Baraz studied flower arrangements in Japan. Later, she owned her own beauty shop and a small pharmaceutical business in Malaysia. She also lived in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, while teaching English to a royal family.

Baraz came to the U.S. in the late 1980s while working for the Malaysian government. The divorced mother of three later brought her two sons and daughter to join her.

"She said my children need to go out there and see the world," Rita Mazlan said. "That's how amazing she is. She wanted us to see different lifestyles and ways of thinking."

Fluent in three languages, Baraz earned a bachelor's degree and was working toward her master's.

Life here wasn't always easy. Two marriages failed, the first of which lasted less than a year after she arrived in this country -- a red flag to immigration officials because immigrants sometimes use marriage as a ruse to gain entrance into the United States, followed by a quick divorce. Baraz and her third husband, Michael, are now divorcing.

Most heartbreaking, though, was the loss of both her sons. Rita Mazlan said one brother died from AIDS at age 30 in about 1996; another brother died a few years ago at age 40.

Justice?

Immigration officials argue Baraz long ago wore out her welcome.

According to their records, she last entered the U.S. in February 1992 on a diplomatic visa but violated its terms about two years later. Deportation proceedings began Jan. 11, 1996.

An immigration judge finally ordered her deportation in January 2006 after numerous petitions for immigration benefits and subsequent appeals were denied. Her pleas to both the Board of Immigration Appeals and the 7th District Court of Appeals also were rejected.

She was ordered to surrender for deportation Nov. 27. She failed to do so, federal officials said, and became a fugitive. She was arrested March 6 in Glen Ellyn.

"Her case and all her appeals to the courts have been repeatedly denied," said Gail Montenegro, a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement spokeswoman. "(She) is one of about 580,000 immigration fugitives who continue to defy the immigration courts by illegally residing in the United States after they were ordered deported."

In deciding whether to suspend her deportation, the immigration judge found Baraz lacked "good moral character." Her immigration attorney, Matthew Bernstein, of the Chicago-Kent College of Law, is challenging the ruling.

"Unfortunately, because of the criminal charge, she's not the most sympathetic candidate," Bernstein said. "The judge certainly pointed to the death of this child as a very important factor when he made the decision that she was not a person of good moral character."

Though so-called "hearsay" evidence is admissible in such immigration proceedings, Bernstein argues that the evidence used against Baraz wasn't probative or fair.

For example, the judge cited the criminal case despite Baraz's acquittal. He noted her insurer's six-figure settlement. He also considered state child-welfare agency reports regarding injuries of other children while at Baraz's day care but, Bernstein said, he was not allowed to cross-examine anyone.

Bernstein has asked the 7th District appeals court for a new immigration hearing regarding suspending deportation. Justices can only rule on whether there was an error in the law or the due process violation claim.

"In exercising his discretion, the judge took into account evidence that should never have been submitted," Bernstein said. "Regardless of which side of the immigration debate you are on, if you're going to have a system, that system needs to be fair and it needs to be administered with basic due process that we as a country believe in."

In the meantime, he said, immigration officials have denied his request to stay the deportation. They are awaiting travel documents before she is shipped home -- a day the Manzardos welcome.

"It gives us some sense of justice," Laurie Manzardo said. "Up until this point, we don't feel we've had any."

Rallying the troops

It's unclear when Baraz will be deported. Bernstein said it typically takes about 90 days once processing begins.

As he fights in court, a groundswell of support has emerged in her community.

Her supporters, led by Chana Bernstein, who heads a Glen Ellyn-based charity in which Baraz has volunteered, have collected nearly 100 names in a petition to U.S. Rep. Peter J. Roskam to intervene.

If he chooses to do so, Roskam would have to get a bill passed in Baraz's honor. A staff member said his office will look into the request.

Her supporters include celebrated children's author Darwin Walton of Lombard, who is nationally known for vocalizing the contributions of minorities and women.

Meanwhile, Rita Mazlan is making living arrangements with family back in Malaysia and Singapore. She said Baraz has become quite Americanized, so the transition will be tough. Still, she doubts Baraz will give up.

"She's fighting because she feels she has to stand up for herself," the daughter said. "It's not necessarily that she feels she has to prove something, but it's her pride. It's how she is. She's always fought for what is right, what is fair and equal."