Rough N400 interview with Junior Officer

[KL123 5]

@Crazy Cat … I was casted as an extra for a film studio in my state playing an embassy guard and being in time I played and wore military uniform…I used a thread of text conversation as evidence and that military photo was part of the the text thread. 

[African Zealot 1,455]

Any situation that needs convoluted explanations like you’re giving is bound to cause problems with immigration. Your case is not “clean” (I am not implying you’re hiding anything, it’s simply not straightforward). Military attire, working in Afghanistan in a pseudo military position, etc. Your attorney might also might have overdone it with requesting a supervisor and the interview being terminated. Aggravating immigration officers typically leads to consequences.

 

I wouldn’t expect a positive results. I fully expect an RFE requesting you provide proof you were not in the military and possibly a second interview. Meanwhile they’re probably going through your past with a fine toothed comb.

 

My advice is try to relax, go on with life and address the RFE or whatever issues when they come. Alternatively try to be preemptive by gathering convincing evidence confirming you were actually never in the military.

 

Mandamus is not cheap, pray it doesn’t get to that.

Edited June 20, 2022 by African Zealot

[KL123 5]

@Mike E I just did a quick google and a writ of mandamus is on average $6000 not including additional lawyer fees YIKES!!! My attorney filed a complaint about the officer with the field office director and she got a response that the director will look into the matter personally , though it’s been 35 days with no feedback thus my post on VJ as the anxiety is at an all time high

[KL123 5]

@African Zealot thank you for the feedback, wouldn’t my military back ring have shown up in my fingerprint USCIS background check?? I have the employment contract the my former employer while in Afghanistan as a civilian contractor also how can I prove I have never been in the military ? Is there a written document I can request from the military? 

[African Zealot 1,455]

13 minutes ago, Kevlynn said:

@African Zealot thank you for the feedback, wouldn’t my military back ring have shown up in my fingerprint USCIS background check?? I have the employment contract the my former employer while in Afghanistan as a civilian contractor also how can I prove I have never been in the military ? Is there a written document I can request from the military? 

I’m assuming you can get an official letter from Kenyan army confirming you were never enlisted in the army. Adding the employer contract you have from your former employer should bolster your case. What kind of visa did you go to Afghanistan on? I am assuming soldiers go with a different kind of “visa” or authorization so that can help distinguish. Finally you must have received work authorization from the Afghanistan government which would confirm it’s a civilian authorization l

[Rocio0010 5,599]

For N400 you usually don’t have to prove the relationship as hardly as with AOS or ROC, so not sure why you thought submitting text messages between you and your wife would help, especially if you have a military uniform. Now you have to prove them you were never in the military, which can be hard. Usually proving a negative is hard. 
For now, I would let it as it is. You already have a supervisor looking into it, and they have, give or take, 120 days. 
In the meantime, as @African Zealot has suggested, look into evidence that you were not in the military. Additionally, I would look for evidence that proves that you were using a military uniform as part of a movie (maybe you signed a contract, etc etc)

[KL123 5]

@African Zealot the military uniform in question was a US marine uniform ( captain ) as I was casted as an “extra” here in my local state by a film studio…I was hired to work in Afghanistan  for a US based company( Dyncorp international) via an agency that recruited from Kuwait and Dubai & ..Non military personnel ( workers) entering Afghanistan needed a letter of authorization from the US Govt which I had and it clearly states my country of citizenship , passport number since I had no SSN & that letter was sponsored by my former employer. That letter of authorization was already in my A file as I had used it previously in my documentation and that’s what made the immigration officer confused as to what I was doing in Afghanistan if not in the military. 

[KL123 5]

@Rocio0010 thank you for the feedback, I did a few “extra” roles for a film studio here , and since it’s not professional acting as we are just used for background film shots  there is no “ employment “ contract …I found that gig on Craigslist and only have the paystubs for the work done.  

[Rocio0010 5,599]

8 minutes ago, Kevlynn said:

@Rocio0010 thank you for the feedback, I did a few “extra” roles for a film studio here , and since it’s not professional acting as we are just used for background film shots  there is no “ employment “ contract …I found that gig on Craigslist and only have the paystubs for the work done.  

Is there any chance you’d have saved screenshots of the postings?

[KL123 5]

@Roccio0010 no I didn’t save any screenshots as they were from 2014.. the immigration officer was going through my entire case files and dug out that text thread with the military photo. Wouldn’t the FBI background checks that USCIS perform indicate any military records or affiliation??

[Imperium 81]

4 hours ago, Kevlynn said:

@Imperium Kenyan national and worked for Dyncorp international back in 2009 before I ever moved to the states. 

Can you provide your TCN contract and TOR that you signed with Dyno to USCIS?

You can ask USCIS to verify with Dyno, they are in VA.

I am sure USCIS can use that to quick run a check saving you long wait and money. Also Dyno was a contractor for "Security Sector" and these activities precisely fall under contigency Ops. 

[African Zealot 1,455]

4 minutes ago, Kevlynn said:

Wouldn’t the FBI background checks that USCIS perform indicate any military records or affiliation??

Background checks are imperfect so with an officer seeing what he thinks is evidence of you being in the military, he would go with what he sees aka hard evidence.

 

Many people slip through background checks with fingerprints even today despite sophisticated and powerful computer mining of databases. They’re not foolproof.

[KL123 5]

@Imperium yes I can provide the full contract that I was employed as a TCN with Dyncorp and the wages I made , basic of my employment which was Logcap 4 . I have also  checked that Dyncorp has now been renamed to Amentum don’t know if that will be an issue. I pray USCIS can just check that from their end

[Rocio0010 5,599]

18 minutes ago, Kevlynn said:

@Roccio0010 no I didn’t save any screenshots as they were from 2014.. the immigration officer was going through my entire case files and dug out that text thread with the military photo. Wouldn’t the FBI background checks that USCIS perform indicate any military records or affiliation??

I am not by any means a specialist or very knowledgeable in FBI background checks. But what I do know is that there are different checks that produce different findings, and none of them is perfect.

[KL123 5]

@African Zealot that would be unfortunate  to slip through a big govt entity like the military. Also maybe my lawyer jumped the gun at the interview but the  officer was rude and condescending and wanted me to accept to something I am not which triggered my lawyer to ask for a supervisor. I can’t even imagine where I would be if I had accepted that I was in the military knowing very well I have never been.