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Ex-soldier faces deportation
BY BART JONES
STAFF WRITER
November 4, 2005
David De Jong went to Sachem High School, served five years in the U.S. military and later worked in Hungary helping American troops who were preparing to invade Iraq.
But now the U.S. immigration service wants to deport the Canadian native, because he violated the terms of his green card by living outside the United States for too long after he was honorably discharged in 1998.
De Jong, 30, who is divorced from his German wife and is living in Farmingville, said he cares for three sons. He acknowledges extended stays in Germany while working at PX stores as a civilian, but said he couldn't leave for part of the time because his son Markus, now 6, underwent heart surgery and other treatment his health insurance would not cover here.
De Jong is pleading with authorities to let him and the boys stay with family in Farmingville, where he spent his teenage years and where his mother and stepfather live. "For me this is home," said De Jong, who has until Nov. 30 to leave or become an undocumented immigrant subject to deportation. "For them to say you have to go throws me for a loop."
Three sons must go, too
His sons, who are not U.S. citizens, also must leave by the end of the month. De Jong added that he has few relatives in Canada. A sister, Patricia Swezey, lives in Blue Point.
Army spokeswoman Lt. Col. Pamela Hart said she did not know of any other case of a veteran with no criminal record being deported. While stating that immigration laws must be obeyed and the military cannot get involved in De Jong's case because he is no longer a soldier, she added, "Of course we value what he has done for this country and always will."
While the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement division does not keep statistics on such cases, spokeswoman Ernestine Fobbs said, "This is definitely an unusual case."
Kevin Corsaro, a spokesman for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection office in Buffalo, said that because of privacy laws he could not comment specifically on De Jong's case. But he said it is likely De Jong lost his permanent legal residency status because he was out of the United States for too long.
People with green cards must show their intent is to live in the United States, he said. If they are going to be outside the country for more than a year, they must seek a waiver unless they are in the military.
The government doesn't "want to issue a permanent resident card to someone who is not going to become a permanent resident," said Corsaro, who added that De Jong can appeal to an immigration judge.
Congressman comes to aid
Rep. Tim Bishop (D-Southampton) is taking on De Jong's cause, and his staff is trying to get an immigration hearing. "When immigration cases are considered, I believe it is important to take one's personal circumstances into account," Bishop said. "David De Jong has served this country, was a permanent resident and has parents on Long Island who are ready to give a loving home to him and his three children."
De Jong said he entered the United States about 20 times over the past decade with no problems until now. He said he couldn't leave Germany for two years after Markus was born in 1999 with a heart defect, underwent surgery almost a year later, and had to be monitored by doctors. De Jong said the surgery was done in Germany because it has socialized medicine. He added that he didn't know he was supposed to seek a green card waiver.
He said his odyssey began after he graduated from Sachem in 1993, joined the military and spent two years in Germany repairing radios on military helicopters, where he met his future wife. He spent another two years at Fort Bragg in North Carolina maintaining electrical systems on Chinook helicopters before returning to Germany in 1998 as a civilian to work with an American company that ran PX stores on U.S. military bases.
De Jong's marriage ended recently, and early this year he returned to the United States, hoping to become a teacher. In September, his ex-wife turned over legal custody of the boys - including 4-year-old twins Sean and Lukas - who flew in from Germany.
De Jong traveled to Niagara Falls in late September to obtain Canadian passports for his children, thinking that would expedite their U.S. residency applications. When he tried to return here, immigration officials stopped him. They said his green card had expired and that if he wanted to get back in, he had to sign a document acknowledging he had forfeited his permanent legal residency status. He said he signed "under duress," since his children were in Farmingville.
De Jong thinks he deserves better because he served honorably. He said after he was discharged he even went to Hungary in 2003 to work in a PX store that served American soldiers preparing to invade Iraq.
"Immigrants can cake-walk into this country and nobody does anything about it," he said. But immigration authorities "can throw me out at the drop of a hat."
We feel that David, being an Ex-US Soldier, should be granted total citizenship into the United States.
Ex-soldier faces deportation
BY BART JONES
STAFF WRITER
November 4, 2005
David De Jong went to Sachem High School, served five years in the U.S. military and later worked in Hungary helping American troops who were preparing to invade Iraq.
But now the U.S. immigration service wants to deport the Canadian native, because he violated the terms of his green card by living outside the United States for too long after he was honorably discharged in 1998.
De Jong, 30, who is divorced from his German wife and is living in Farmingville, said he cares for three sons. He acknowledges extended stays in Germany while working at PX stores as a civilian, but said he couldn't leave for part of the time because his son Markus, now 6, underwent heart surgery and other treatment his health insurance would not cover here.
De Jong is pleading with authorities to let him and the boys stay with family in Farmingville, where he spent his teenage years and where his mother and stepfather live. "For me this is home," said De Jong, who has until Nov. 30 to leave or become an undocumented immigrant subject to deportation. "For them to say you have to go throws me for a loop."
Three sons must go, too
His sons, who are not U.S. citizens, also must leave by the end of the month. De Jong added that he has few relatives in Canada. A sister, Patricia Swezey, lives in Blue Point.
Army spokeswoman Lt. Col. Pamela Hart said she did not know of any other case of a veteran with no criminal record being deported. While stating that immigration laws must be obeyed and the military cannot get involved in De Jong's case because he is no longer a soldier, she added, "Of course we value what he has done for this country and always will."
While the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement division does not keep statistics on such cases, spokeswoman Ernestine Fobbs said, "This is definitely an unusual case."
Kevin Corsaro, a spokesman for the U.S. Customs and Border Protection office in Buffalo, said that because of privacy laws he could not comment specifically on De Jong's case. But he said it is likely De Jong lost his permanent legal residency status because he was out of the United States for too long.
People with green cards must show their intent is to live in the United States, he said. If they are going to be outside the country for more than a year, they must seek a waiver unless they are in the military.
The government doesn't "want to issue a permanent resident card to someone who is not going to become a permanent resident," said Corsaro, who added that De Jong can appeal to an immigration judge.
Congressman comes to aid
Rep. Tim Bishop (D-Southampton) is taking on De Jong's cause, and his staff is trying to get an immigration hearing. "When immigration cases are considered, I believe it is important to take one's personal circumstances into account," Bishop said. "David De Jong has served this country, was a permanent resident and has parents on Long Island who are ready to give a loving home to him and his three children."
De Jong said he entered the United States about 20 times over the past decade with no problems until now. He said he couldn't leave Germany for two years after Markus was born in 1999 with a heart defect, underwent surgery almost a year later, and had to be monitored by doctors. De Jong said the surgery was done in Germany because it has socialized medicine. He added that he didn't know he was supposed to seek a green card waiver.
He said his odyssey began after he graduated from Sachem in 1993, joined the military and spent two years in Germany repairing radios on military helicopters, where he met his future wife. He spent another two years at Fort Bragg in North Carolina maintaining electrical systems on Chinook helicopters before returning to Germany in 1998 as a civilian to work with an American company that ran PX stores on U.S. military bases.
De Jong's marriage ended recently, and early this year he returned to the United States, hoping to become a teacher. In September, his ex-wife turned over legal custody of the boys - including 4-year-old twins Sean and Lukas - who flew in from Germany.
De Jong traveled to Niagara Falls in late September to obtain Canadian passports for his children, thinking that would expedite their U.S. residency applications. When he tried to return here, immigration officials stopped him. They said his green card had expired and that if he wanted to get back in, he had to sign a document acknowledging he had forfeited his permanent legal residency status. He said he signed "under duress," since his children were in Farmingville.
De Jong thinks he deserves better because he served honorably. He said after he was discharged he even went to Hungary in 2003 to work in a PX store that served American soldiers preparing to invade Iraq.
"Immigrants can cake-walk into this country and nobody does anything about it," he said. But immigration authorities "can throw me out at the drop of a hat."
We feel that David, being an Ex-US Soldier, should be granted total citizenship into the United States.
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