Missing soldier’s wife to stay in U.S.

In a stunning turnaround, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has decided to drop deportation proceedings against the wife of a missing Corona-born soldier.
Yaderlin Jimenez, who came to U.S. from the Dominican Republic illegally in 2001 and is currently staying with family in Pennsylvania, was threatened with removal until local politicians, including Congressmember Joseph Crowley and City Councilmember Hiram Monserrate, intervened by sending letters to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials.
“While it would be wrong to separate Yaderlin from her family in the United States under the best of circumstances, it would be a tragedy to force her to leave at this time, given the emotionally devastating situation she is facing,” wrote Crowley. “I am therefore urging Immigration and Customs Enforcement to grant Yaderlin permission to remain in the country, to ensure that she can stay here during this difficult time.”
Jimenez, whose Purple Heart-winning husband of three years, Specialist Alex Jimenez, 25, went missing in Iraq May 12 after a deadly roadside bomb attack — and whose identification was later discovered in an Al Qaeda hideout — had been applying for green card status since marrying in 2004.
The deportation case against her was opened soon after, but was closed in May of last year when her husband was deployed for duty for a second time.
“There is no move to deport her,” said Jamie Zuieback, a homeland security spokesperson, in published reports. “We, like all Americans, hope for Specialist Jimenez’s safe return.”
Along with Crowley and Monserrate, Senators Edward Kennedy and John Kerry joined the call to keep Jimenez in the U.S.
Kerry later received a letter from DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff stating,
“With my greatest respect for her husband’s service to our nation and my sincere hope for his safe return, I … have instructed [immigration officials] to take immediate action to resolve her immigration issues.”
In response to the decision, Rohit Mahajan, spokesperson for Crowley, said, “They definitely heeded the call for compassion and honor for our soldiers.”