Posted on 03/20/2013 8:57:04 PM PDT by Tennessee Nana
The deportations of undocumented veterans may follow convictions of felonies such as homicides or sexual assaults, but, as Shagin said, “they don't have to be felonies at all. They often are misdemeanors or unclassified crimes. Of course, I don’t look at the crime. They were punished for the crimes, whatever they were. As veterans who served this country, they should not face deportation.
minor, minor, crimes can lead to deportation,” Shagin added. “Under U.S. immigration law, there are certain offenses
SNIP
ICE spokeswoman Ernestine Fobbs: "ICE carefully reviews any potential enforcement action involving a veteran. Prior to removing an alien with military service, agents must first receive authorization from senior leadership in a field office, following an evaluation by local counsel. ICE exercises prosecutorial discretion for members of the armed forces who have honorably served our country on a case-by-case basis when appropriate and (ICE) Director (John) Morton's June 2011 memo on prosecutorial discretion specifically identifies service in the U.S. military as a positive factor that should be considered when deciding whether prosecutorial discretion is appropriate.”
SNIP
Groups pushing to halt illegal immigration and stiffen border security, like the nonprofit Federation for American Immigrant Reform (FAIR), insist that veterans like Rebolledo and Barajas all agreed to a sacred accord when they crossed into U.S. soil: obey the laws or return to their places of origin.
“When you come to the United States as a legal immigrant, the bargain is you are not going to get into trouble. It’s a conditional agreement. We allow you to come here and pursue life, liberty and happiness and, in return, we expect you’re not going to commit felonies,” said Ira Mehlman, the spokesman for FAIR. “They served in the military but that doesn’t exempt one from complying with the law."
(Excerpt) Read more at usnews.nbcnews.com ...
I swore an oath that I agreed with the law and I signed a document that stated I understood that I would be deported for felonies and that I could be deported for misdemeanors. There was no exception for veterans.
I dont know if all these guys are immigrants or if some are illegal aliens. Their attorney, Shagin, mentions "undocumented veterans". If they are immigrants they agreed to the same laws I did.
As enlistees all these guys swore also to uphold the Constitution. Again as I did when I enlisted.
Where's the loyalty from them to the Constitution? Where's the loyalty from them to our country?
Each one committed crimes and were duly proscecuted and spent time in jail and then were deported. I'm not crying for their veteran status.
They had the same breaks and chances I've had for the 40+ years I've lived here.
As veterans who served this country, they should not face deportation.
________________________________________________
Veterans are not exempt from the law...
If they were immigrants they agreed to the laws when they came here..
If they are illegal aliens then “Adios”
“undocumented veterans” ???
1. Do not come here illegally
2. Do not break the laws
seems simple
am I supposed to feel sorry for these people?
Uh. How could you possibly get through MEPS as an illegal? You have to prove pretty much every facet of your life to get in, there’s no faking MEPS.
How did they join the military if they were illegal?
Fraud?? ID theft? Perjury?
If they saved some lives or some heroic deed then that is special circumstances,but plenty of 'military' jobs are sitting around doing nothing.
Yeppers youre suppose to cry buckets...
Heres a hanky and a box of tissues...
also they want benefits, medical etc
they want the money for their medical conditions..
not war wounds though..
None seem to have been in Iraq or Afghanistan...
One was in the service from 1995 to 2001...no wars then..
He doesnt sppear to have put in a claim for his bad knees after he got out and before he committed a crime..
He had 3 years before he was deported to file..
Beats me...
a couple of them said they came here as children with their families...
Maybe they graduated from a US high school and knew some English ???
Maybe they had phony SSN ???
bump
Yeah
:)
GeronL: “am I supposed to feel sorry for these people?”
Perhaps, depending on the nature of their crimes and the quality of their service, but then the law needs to be enforced anyway.
When I was in the military, I had some people kicked out. I didn’t wish them any ill will at all. Some were simply not fit for service. That doesn’t mean I wasn’t sympathetic to their plight, but I still did what I thought was in the service’s best interest.
Undocumented Veterans = Illegal Aliens
If they are really veterans....they would be documented...as in DD Form 214, for starters
But, hey, Rubio, Paul, GOP are gonna give them Amnesty anyway
Someone suggested in the Comments section that they might not have had honorable discharges..
that would stop them from getting benefits..
I think that a veteran has to be honorably discharged to get medical, claim disability benefits etc..
They may have been “booted” from the military before they were so called “booted” from the country...
Bosnia could be a possibility. Maybe.
Right. We already have too many criminals in this country without bringing in foreign criminals too.
HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE WE TALKING ABOUT? A tiny handful would be my guess. Serving soldiers and vets get to the head of the line in requesting citizenship. Why are these people not citizens? Could it be that they do not have honorable discharges?
in the Comments a guy who worked for the VA was crying over a homeless immigrant veteran he had worked with
the veteran had been in the military 18 years, was honorably discharged, committed a crime and was deported...
If he had wanted to be a citizen he could have after being in the US for a mere THREE years since he was still in the service...
I became an American citizen while I was in the service..
I wore my uniform to the ceremony...
Thank you for your service, Nana!
Right. Illegals cannot enlist or serve. Green card holders can. Although they are here legally, Green Card holders are still subject to removal if convicted of a crime of “moral turpitude.” But if these guys served honorably, they would have been able to become citizens. Why did they not do so? This is why I think the media are making a big stink, over a tiny number of folks. In the best case, they were imprudent in not obtaining citizenship. In the worst case,they did not serve honorably and were thus ineligible to request citizenship.
Green card holders don't have to join the military to become citizens - they just have to have been resident in the country for 5 years. Are you sure that a veteran's naturalization application requires an honorable discharge?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.