Thai family wins citizenship after decades quest
The Associated Press
Updated: 09/25/2009 11:36:30 AM PDT
LOS ANGELES—A Thai family threatened with deportation over a 1975 divorce certificate has completed their quest to become American citizens.
Pai Ciesiolka and her two adult sons took their oath of naturalization Friday at the Los Angeles Sports Arena among a crowd of 2,300 new citizens.
The family obtained green cards in the 1970s after Ciesiolka married an American citizen.
But when they applied to naturalize, U.S. immigration authorities refused to recognize a 1975 divorce certificate that Ciesiolka obtained from a Thai consulate to end her first marriage, and alleged she was married to two men at once.
The government threatened to deport the family, but eventually approved their citizenship applications after pressure from attorneys and an Associated Press story in May.
Friday, September 25, 2009
Thai family wins citizenship after decades quest (AP c/o The Monterey Herald)
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