Freedom Folks: Illegal Supporting Senators Illegal Wife In Hiding

Source: NYT

The wife of a Georgia legislator known for his strong support of immigrants’ rights is in hiding after federal agents came to their home on Tuesday with an order to deport her to her native Colombia, her lawyer said.

In a written statement issued on Wednesday, State Senator Curt Thompson, 37, a Democrat, said his wife, Sascha Herrera, 28, missed an immigration-related court hearing in February 2005. Mr. Thompson said notices about an asylum application that had been mistakenly filed on her behalf had been sent to the wrong address, causing her to miss the hearing.

Because Ms. Herrera did not appear in court, a federal judge issued a deportation order in February 2005, Charles H. Kuck, Ms. Herrera’s immigration lawyer, said on Friday.

Mr. Kuck said Mr. Thompson told him that his wife was not at the couple’s home when Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrived on Tuesday to take her into custody. Mr. Kuck would say only that Ms. Herrera was in a safe place.

Marc Raimondi, a spokesman for Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Washington, said he could not comment on the specifics of Ms. Herrera’s case. Generally, Mr. Raimondi said, “People who are here legally are very, very careful about their immigration status.” Of the couple’s claims of ignorance about the notices, he said, “It sounds like a lot of song and dance.”

Heh!

H/T Digger who has more

***UPDATE***

Must be nice to be an illegal alien married to a senator...

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 (unique fact one, her husband is a senator -ed.), 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.