Obiwan
Diamond Member
- Mar 22, 2015
- 12,154
- 10,044
US immigration snafu keeping WWII vet, 89, from being with his son
John Oliver's last chance to live out his days with his son in New Jersey might have been to sneak across the U.S. border, but the ailing, 89-year-old World War II Royal Air Force veteran didn't want to break the law.
Instead, Oliver -- who lives in the Bailiwick of Jersey, the largest of England's Channel Islands -- and his son, an American citizen, went about it the honest way, filing all the tedious paperwork and paying the required fees to secure him a green card.
All seemed to be going as it should until immigration officials determined Oliver must be barred from re-entering the U.S. for the next 10 years because he overstayed a 90-day visa issued in 2011, when his wife was dying and doctors recommended the couple remain under the care of their 61-year-old son in New Jersey.
"Our biggest mistake was being honest," his son, Robert Oliver, of Vernon, N.J., told FoxNews.com Wednesday. "Lawyers told us we should have just kept him here illegally."
The family's ordeal began in October 2011 when Robert Oliver flew to the Bailiwick of Jersey to bring his father and sickly mother stateside to New Jersey, where he lives with his fiancée, Mary Bradley.
Shortly after the family arrived, Oliver's mother, Betty, rapidly deteriorated, requiring 24-hour care. At the same time, Oliver and his fiancée were working tirelessly to secure green cards for the elderly couple.
The Olivers had planned to leave the U.S. at the end of their three month visa but doctors said Betty -- who was suffering from severe osteoporosis and liver problems -- was too sick to travel and would not survive the trip.
"All along, with speaking with immigration, they were assuring me that this was such an easy case. 'Not to worry, not to worry,'" Mary Bradley said. "I just followed the system and filled out the forms they asked for."
When Betty Oliver suffered a stroke in June 2012, Robert Oliver and his fiancée notified immigration officials that the two had overstayed their visa and explained the circumstances.
"At no point did it even cross our mind that this man should leave the country and leave his wife," Bradley told FoxNews.com. "She [Betty] was so dependent on him. They were married for nearly 70 years."
In November 2012, Betty Oliver died while in hospice care in New Jersey. At that point, Oliver and Bradley turned their efforts into securing a green card for John Oliver, whose health was also declining. They filed forms with the State Department, Homeland Security and its immigration enforcement arm, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, or USCIS.
The applications were denied, the couple said.
The rejections infuriated Oliver and Bradley, who wrote a message to President Obama through the White House website about the family's plight.
Bradley said she received a response in January 2014 from the president in the form of a generic-looking letter, with links to the administration's immigration policy as well as to websites for USCIS and ICE, United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
"Thank you for writing," Obama's letter began. "America’s immigration system is badly broken, and I know many people are hurting because of it."
So Obozo can throw the door open for illegals, but he can't have compassion for an 89yo WWII vet with family in the US, BECAUSE THE VET TRIED TO OBEY THE LAW!!!
John Oliver's last chance to live out his days with his son in New Jersey might have been to sneak across the U.S. border, but the ailing, 89-year-old World War II Royal Air Force veteran didn't want to break the law.
Instead, Oliver -- who lives in the Bailiwick of Jersey, the largest of England's Channel Islands -- and his son, an American citizen, went about it the honest way, filing all the tedious paperwork and paying the required fees to secure him a green card.
All seemed to be going as it should until immigration officials determined Oliver must be barred from re-entering the U.S. for the next 10 years because he overstayed a 90-day visa issued in 2011, when his wife was dying and doctors recommended the couple remain under the care of their 61-year-old son in New Jersey.
"Our biggest mistake was being honest," his son, Robert Oliver, of Vernon, N.J., told FoxNews.com Wednesday. "Lawyers told us we should have just kept him here illegally."
The family's ordeal began in October 2011 when Robert Oliver flew to the Bailiwick of Jersey to bring his father and sickly mother stateside to New Jersey, where he lives with his fiancée, Mary Bradley.
Shortly after the family arrived, Oliver's mother, Betty, rapidly deteriorated, requiring 24-hour care. At the same time, Oliver and his fiancée were working tirelessly to secure green cards for the elderly couple.
The Olivers had planned to leave the U.S. at the end of their three month visa but doctors said Betty -- who was suffering from severe osteoporosis and liver problems -- was too sick to travel and would not survive the trip.
"All along, with speaking with immigration, they were assuring me that this was such an easy case. 'Not to worry, not to worry,'" Mary Bradley said. "I just followed the system and filled out the forms they asked for."
When Betty Oliver suffered a stroke in June 2012, Robert Oliver and his fiancée notified immigration officials that the two had overstayed their visa and explained the circumstances.
"At no point did it even cross our mind that this man should leave the country and leave his wife," Bradley told FoxNews.com. "She [Betty] was so dependent on him. They were married for nearly 70 years."
In November 2012, Betty Oliver died while in hospice care in New Jersey. At that point, Oliver and Bradley turned their efforts into securing a green card for John Oliver, whose health was also declining. They filed forms with the State Department, Homeland Security and its immigration enforcement arm, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, or USCIS.
The applications were denied, the couple said.
The rejections infuriated Oliver and Bradley, who wrote a message to President Obama through the White House website about the family's plight.
Bradley said she received a response in January 2014 from the president in the form of a generic-looking letter, with links to the administration's immigration policy as well as to websites for USCIS and ICE, United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
"Thank you for writing," Obama's letter began. "America’s immigration system is badly broken, and I know many people are hurting because of it."
So Obozo can throw the door open for illegals, but he can't have compassion for an 89yo WWII vet with family in the US, BECAUSE THE VET TRIED TO OBEY THE LAW!!!
