News & Events

Media Contact: Michael Sadowski, Communications Coordinator
msadowski@barley.com or 717-208-8842

For Immediate Release 

York, Pa. – Barley Snyder managing partner Jeff Lobach will be part of a panel discussion following a screening of “Golden Venture,” a documentary film examining the historic plight of hundreds of Chinese refugees and their fight for justice and freedom in York County.

The event, presented by York College of Pennsylvania and the York County Bar Association/York County Bar Foundation, shines a light on a time when York County was the center of national headlines and ground zero for the legal battle to free Chinese immigrants whose ship, Golden Venture, ran aground near New York City in 1993.

The story ended with the Golden Venture immigrants detained in the York County Prison receiving a 1997 presidential parole, thanks at least in part to the attorneys who worked on the case pro bono for four years. Lobach was the president of the York County Bar Association when the case began in 1993 and helped spearhead the effort to have the immigrants released.

This month’s event starts with an art exhibit of pieces the Chinese immigrants crafted while detained in York County. A viewing of the Tim Robbins-narrated “Golden Venture” documentary follows, with the Q&A and panel discussion immediately after the screening.

“It’s not surprising to me that people still want to keep this story alive, especially in light of the national political climate surrounding immigration,” Lobach said. “Questions and actions concerning immigration in the United States are as important as ever, and we can continue to look to the Golden Venture case as a learning tool for future generations of both attorneys and citizens.”

Scheduled to join Lobach on the panel will be:

• York County Judge Craig T. Trebilcock, who worked as an attorney on the Golden Venture case
• Joan M. Maruskin, the former coordinator of People of the Golden Vision, a citizens group that formed to help pursue justice for the Chinese immigrants
• Mary Studzinski, the executive director of the Pennsylvania Immigration Resource Center, a nonprofit law firm focused on providing access to legal services, education and assistance for vulnerable, indigent immigrants.

The event will be held at Weinstock Lecture Hall on the campus of York College on April 25. The art exhibit starts at 6 p.m., the movie screening starts at 7 p.m. and the panel discussion begins at 8:30 p.m.

About Barley Snyder

Barley Snyderis a law firm based in central Pennsylvania with more than 90 attorneys practicing from offices located in Lancaster, York, Reading, Harrisburg, Malvern, Hanover and Gettysburg, Pa., and Hunt Valley and Columbia, Md. The firm serves businesses, individuals and organizations in all major areas of civil law including: business, employment, immigration, employee benefits, finance & creditors’ rights, intellectual property, litigation, estate planning and administration, real estate, tax, construction, environment & energy, health care, education, municipal authority, hospitality, senior living and food & agribusiness. www.barley.com | @BarleySnyder

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