Veterans Deportation Defense Lawyer
The nation observed Veteran’s Day on Saturday with parades and celebrations throughout the country. The New York City Veteran’s Day Parade is the largest event, featuring “America’s Parade” and this year celebrated its 98th anniversary. The parade, which marched down the center of New York City, Fifth Avenue, had more than 20,000 people participating this year. The participants included military bands, floats, high school marching bands, police and military groups and a few local celebrities including New York City mayor Bill de Blasio, Governor Andrew Cuomo as well as the Honorary Grand Marshall Buzz Aldrin. Not everyone honoring the day however, had the opportunity to be present at the parade or in the country at all. Photographs of several veterans who have been deported from the country went viral throughout the country over the weekend. In Mexico, veterans who served in the United States army and were given a false promise of U.S. citizenship, found themselves deported after their service ended. On Saturday a group of these soldiers came together earlier this year on Memorial Day to protest in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. A Veterans Deportation Defense Lawyer at Pozo Goldstein LLP is available for all your deporation and immigration needs.
Deported veterans in Mexico have served in wars and countries such as Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan have found that fellow veterans have come together to help deported veterans obtain the medical benefits that all veterans are entitled to regardless of their immigration status.
According to NBC News in May, a report found that throughout the world at least 239 people were deported to at least 34 different countries, who had previously served in the United State military. These same individuals had been promised the reward of citizenship, but were ultimately denied when these promises went unfulfilled.
Veterans who are not citizens of the United States may face deportation for certain crimes, even after serving in the military. Most veterans do not know about this and many believe that service in the military is direct path to citizenship.
The current immigration laws do not recognize service in the armed forces as a direct and automatic path to citizenship. However, there are some benefits awarded to veterans that ordinary applicants do not have access to. One such benefit is an expedited application process for adjustment of status to spouses of U.S. military personnel or veterans, as well as a simplified process for U.S. citizenship. Veterans are often able to bypass the process of obtaining lawful permanent residency, prior to applying for and being granted citizenship. Normally, the requirement by law is that an individual maintains lawful permanent residency status for 5 years prior to applying for citizenship. Veterans who have served during a period of combat are eligible to bypass the process entirely and move straight to U.S. citizenship.
According to the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, veterans who were honorably discharged from the military but were still deported, are still entitle to the benefits they earned, even if they are no longer in the country. An enormous challenge still facing veterans is access to these medical services for veterans who have been deported. Not only are these veterans often in need of medical attention, but many require psychological counseling for the potential of suicide, depression and other related mental illnesses commonly related to potential post-traumatic stress disorder.
