Oakland woman may be deported-Officials say Colombian's marriage to Detroiter was a sham

[zyggy 9]

During the 22 years Rosa Rodriguez has been in the United States, the 38-year-old Rochester Hills woman has come to think and act like a U.S. citizen.

But U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is trying to deport Rodriguez to her native Colombia, saying she married under false pretenses 16 years ago with the goal of becoming a permanent U.S. resident.

Rodriguez is a mortgage service representative for an Oakland County financial institution.

Her lawyer, William Dance of Bingham Farms, scoffed at the charges.

"There is no evidence that this woman married to get a green card," Dance said, calling the deportation proceedings "a miscarriage of justice."

Making her return to Colombia, Dance said, would condemn Rodriguez and her 6-year-old U.S.-born daughter to a life of poverty and danger in the violence-torn South American nation. The U.S. State Department even warns Americans not to travel to Colombia, Dance said late last month.

Government lawyer Michael Dobson of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Detroit declined to comment on the case citing federal regulations. A spokesman for the agency also declined to comment.

Rodriguez was born in Valledupar. Her father was a lawyer; her mother, a homemaker.

In 1984, when she was 16, her parents sent her to the United States to escape the violence in Colombia. She said family members were killed, assaulted and threatened for resisting drug cartels and guerrillas.

Rodriguez, who had graduated from high school in Colombia, lived with a physician's family in Southfield and attended U.S. history and government classes at Seaholm High School in Birmingham and Berkley High School. She also has attended college.

When the family moved to Florida in 1986, Rodriguez decided to stay in Michigan.

In 1990, she married Andre Collier of Detroit, who asked the government to allow her to become a permanent resident. Nothing happened.

Rodriguez and Collier said in court that they had a rocky marriage because of his drug and alcohol problems, and Rodriguez said she left him for good in 1995. They never divorced.

Afterward, she had other relationships, including one that resulted in the birth of her daughter, Gabriella, in 1999.

In 2002, 12 years after Rodriguez married Collier, the government began deportation proceedings, charging that around the time she married him, she was living with a man suspected of arranging sham marriages.

Rodriguez and Collier disputed the charges in Detroit immigration court and no agents were called to testify about the accusations.

U.S. Immigration Judge Elizabeth Hacker sided with the government.

"The record is virtually devoid of any evidence of a shared life together," Hacker ruled last August. She said Rodriguez, Collier and Rodriguez's other witnesses contradicted each other and failed to offer tangible proof that the couple had a viable marriage.

Hacker also rejected Rodriguez's request to waive deportation on the grounds that it would create a hardship for her daughter.

Dance said Hacker's decision is unfair and would result in the de facto deportation of a U.S. citizen. He has appealed Hacker's decision to the U.S. Board of Immigration Appeals.

"I know I haven't done anything wrong," Rodriguez said in a recent interview. "I have faith in God that truth will prevail."

Dance said a final decision in the case likely is several months away.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

"The record is virtually devoid of any evidence of a shared life together," Hacker ruled last August. She said Rodriguez, Collier and Rodriguez's other witnesses contradicted each other and failed to offer tangible proof that the couple had a viable marriage.

Interesting!

[zyggy 9]

"The record is virtually devoid of any evidence of a shared life together," Hacker ruled last August. She said Rodriguez, Collier and Rodriguez's other witnesses contradicted each other and failed to offer tangible proof that the couple had a viable marriage.

Interesting!

Isn't it though... that's why I felt that I had to post this...

Edited March 6, 2006 by zyggy

[john_and_marlene 162]

It's a good post for any of those that think they can "game the system" and squeek by on the grey edges of legality.

[almaty 19]

i agree..

[zyggy 9]

i agree..

The even better part... If the person in question was a parolee...

She would have been in detention for over 3 years while she was waiting for her removal proceedings to go through... 3 long years of legal wrangling to have your case heard and decided by an immigration judge... and you essentially sitting in prison.

Food for thought for those getting AP while on a tourist adjustment...

Edited March 6, 2006 by zyggy

[Inlove_tx 0]

In 1990, she married Andre Collier of Detroit, who asked the government to allow her to become a permanent resident. Nothing happened.

Rodriguez and Collier said in court that they had a rocky marriage because of his drug and alcohol problems, and Rodriguez said she left him for good in 1995. They never divorced.

I don't get the whole thing...for example, what does "Nothing happened" mean??? Did she ever get her Green Card at all, or was she living in the States illegally all of those years?

[zyggy 9]

In 1990, she married Andre Collier of Detroit, who asked the government to allow her to become a permanent resident. Nothing happened.

Rodriguez and Collier said in court that they had a rocky marriage because of his drug and alcohol problems, and Rodriguez said she left him for good in 1995. They never divorced.

I don't get the whole thing...for example, what does "Nothing happened" mean??? Did she ever get her Green Card at all, or was she living in the States illegally all of those years?

My guess is due to the resons for her entry to the US that she was applying for asylum... Back in those days, it could be up to 10-15 years before an asylum case would be heard...

[pax 0]

Or was she an EWI? In which case, adjustment was a no-go no matter what...

That's what bugs me about these "human-interest" immigration news items: you never ever get the whole story.

Edited March 6, 2006 by pax

[zyggy 9]

In 1990, she married Andre Collier of Detroit, who asked the government to allow her to become a permanent resident. Nothing happened.

Rodriguez and Collier said in court that they had a rocky marriage because of his drug and alcohol problems, and Rodriguez said she left him for good in 1995. They never divorced.

I don't get the whole thing...for example, what does "Nothing happened" mean??? Did she ever get her Green Card at all, or was she living in the States illegally all of those years?

My guess is due to the resons for her entry to the US that she was applying for asylum... Back in those days, it could be up to 10-15 years before an asylum case would be heard... but that is a sidebar to the real issue and why I posted this article... The comments from the Immigration Judge regarding why she denied the case...

Edited March 6, 2006 by zyggy

[desert_fox 32]

Adios Rosa!!

[ChristinaM 0]

Do you not think that they have better, more forward-looking things to deal with than chasing down people who may or may not have EWI 16 years ago? Like, process some of the backlog, perhaps?

I dunno.

[kc456 0]

In 1990, she married Andre Collier of Detroit, who asked the government to allow her to become a permanent resident. Nothing happened.

Exactly how did he ask and why nothing happened. They skip over important details.

[lucyrich 20]

Or was she an EWI? In which case, adjustment was a no-go no matter what...

No, that was before 245(i) was repealed. 245(i) would let an EWI alien adjust status after paying a fine. It ended in April of 2001 (some cases can theoretically still be grandfathered in if paperwork was filed before that time). The laws were different back then.

That's what bugs me about these "human-interest" immigration news items: you never ever get the whole story.

Agreed 100%.

[almaty 19]

Do you not think that they have better, more forward-looking things to deal with than chasing down people who may or may not have EWI 16 years ago? Like, process some of the backlog, perhaps?

I dunno.

i agree...