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Jun 19, 2007 11:35 pm US/Eastern
Missing Soldier's Wife Fears Deportation
LAWRENCE (WBZ) ―
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Alex Jimenez and his wife, Yaderlin.
WBZ
The wife of a Lawrence soldier who is missing in Iraq may be deported.
Army specialist Alex Jimenez and his wife Yaderlin married in 2004.
According to their immigration lawyer Matthew Kolken, 23-year-old Yaderlin illegally entered the U.S. from the Dominican Republic in 2001.
While stationed in Iraq, Alex petitioned for his wife's green card. But that sent up a red flag about her status.
Kolken says Yaderlin cannot obtain one because she came here illegally. If she were to leave the U.S., Yaderlin would have to wait ten years before applying again for a green card.
Since Alex went missing in Iraq, an immigration judge put a temporary stop to the proceedings.
Kolken is seeking a so-called hardship waiver, which so far the government won't grant.
"I can't imagine a bigger injustice than that, to be deporting someone's wife who is fighting and possibly dying for our country," said Kolken.
All this comes as the military searches for Jimenez and a fellow soldier, captured in a May 12 ambush. The only trace of Jimenez is his military ID card, found outside an Al-Qaeda safehouse.
Yaderlin is currently living with family members in Pennsylvania.
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