Thread: Ga Sen. wife surrenders....Allowed to stay in US

ajc.com > Metro > Gwinnett
State senator's wife surrenders to immigration officials

By ANNA VARELA
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 12/04/06
State Sen. Curt Thompson's wife, Sascha Herrera, turned herself in to federal immigration officials on Tuesday.

The wife of the Norcross Democrat has been under a deportation order and her surrender today had been expected.

On the way in, Herrera said she felt nervous.

"I feel I'm doing the right thing," she said. "I'm just going to do what I need to, the legal way."

Thompson said he hoped his wife would be allowed to go home after meeting with immigration officials.

"Today is just the start of the process," he said.

Their attorney, Charles Kuck, said Herrera would not face a hearing today. "It's just simply an interview with officers at ICE [U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement].

Kuck has said Herrera decided "the best option for her to pursue is to turn herself in and let the system work for her."

He said he hopes the native of Colombia would be allowed to remain free and check in weekly with immigration officials.

Kuck said he planned to file a motion asking a judge to reconsider the deportation order.

Federal immigration officials came to the home of the couple, who married earlier this year, and informed Thompson his wife had a deportation order against her.

Thompson said in a statement last week his wife is the victim of a notario. The term notario refers to attorneys in many Latin American countries. In the U.S. it means notary public. A notario in the Herrera case failed to provide proper address information on some of her applications, Thompson said. As a result she missed notification of a key hearing.

A spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement declined to comment on the case.








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ajc.com > Metro > Gwinnett
Judge scraps deportation order against lawmaker's wife

By ANNA VARELA
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 12/04/06
An immigration judge on Tuesday scrapped a deportation order filed against the wife of state Sen. Curt Thompson, allowing her to remain in the country.

Federal officials went into court Tuesday morning and supported Sascha Herrera Thompson's bid to block her deportation.

"Based on the unique facts of this case, we agreed not to appeal reopening the case," said Terry Bird, chief counsel for the Atlanta office of Immigration and Custom Enforcement.

Bird said that Judge William A. Cassidy expressed concern that Sascha Thompson's deportation appeared to be the result of bad paperwork filed by a notario. The judge urged that the notario be prosecuted, if possible.

Thompson said in a statement last week his wife had been the victim of the unidentified notario. The term notario refers to attorneys in many Latin American countries. In the U.S. it means notary public. The notario in the Herrera case failed to provide proper address information on some of her applications, Thompson said. As a result she missed notification of a key hearing.

Thompson will be allowed to go home and continue to pursue a visa application the couple filed soon after they married last spring.

Federal immigration officials had come to the home of the couple, who married earlier this year, and informed Thompson his wife had a deportation order against her.








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Have I lost my mind here?

Both new stories say this all went down Tuesday, but the published date is Dec 4th.

Is today not Tuesday Dec 5th?

Maybe my daughter is right and I need to "step away form the computer"!

Senator's Wife Turns Herself In

POSTED: 5:36 am EST December 5, 2006
UPDATED: 9:36 am EST December 5, 2006

ATLANTA -- A Georgia state senator's Columbia-born wife who faced deportation is expected to be freed today after meeting witn an immigration judge in Atlanta who lifted the deportation order.

Twenty-eight-year-old Sascha Herrera had gone into hiding after the order was issued. She turned herself in this morning and met with an immigration judge and attorneys for the Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office.

Government lawyer Terry Bird says the judge lifted the order and agreed to reopen her case. Bird says another hearing will be scheduled on a petition filed by Herrera's husband, state Senator Curt Thompson, to establish permanent residency for Herrera.

Thompson, a Democrat from Norcross, is a strong advocate for immigrant rights.

Herrera's lawyer, Charles Kuck, says although the deportation order has been lifted, Herrera is still technically in deportation proceedings. He says he expects the hearing will be held in the next two to four months on her green card for permanent residency.

Bird says the judge's review of Herrera's residency status could put her on track for a chance to become a U.S. citizen.

The deportation order stems from Herrera's repeated failure to appear before a judge on the asylum application, which her lawyer says she did not know had been filed.



I have not lost my mind yet! I wonder if all immigration hearings on deportation are this quick?

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I wonder if all immigration hearings on deportation are this quick?

I'm sure the fact they were dealing with a Senator's wife sped up the process some.

"Based on the unique facts of this case, we agreed not to appeal reopening the case," said Terry Bird, chief counsel for the Atlanta office of Immigration and Custom Enforcement.

Definition of unique facts: Being the wife of a state Senator.

Thompson said in a statement last week his wife had been the victim of the unidentified notario. The term notario refers to attorneys in many Latin American countries. In the U.S. it means notary public. The notario in the Herrera case failed to provide proper address information on some of her applications, Thompson said. As a result she missed notification of a key hearing.

Exactly how many years has she been in this country illegally? Why didn't she follow up on her application? Why didn't she contact U.S. immigration officials to ensure all her paperwork was in order? Wasn't there a date of expiration on her original visa?

This case stinks and they know it, but in order to excuse her illegal status they are attempting to place the blame on an unidentified notary in another country. If someone sells me property that they don't legally own, does that mean that I own it? Ignorrance of the law is no excuse!!

Anyone have an email address on the judge hearing this case? Sounds like he needs to hear from some concerned citizens.

Being the wife of a senator makes her special? Give me a break. She should be deported like everyone else for BREAKING the law.

Has anyone thought about the possibility that this is a TEST CASE which could help in setting precedent?

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Originally Posted by Cindy

Being the wife of a senator makes her special? Give me a break. She should be deported like everyone else for BREAKING the law.

Not being the wife of a senator makes her special, but her marriage to a US citizen allows her to stay. I can marry any male and bring him to the US or the EU. It's called human rights. My human right is to be able to keep my 2 passports without having to fear losing one.