Immigrant detainee's request to stay in U.S. to marry denied (The Star-Ledger)

Immigrant detainee's request to stay in U.S. to marry denied
Published: Thursday, October 20, 2011, 7:35 PM
By Julia Terruso/The Star-Ledger

NEWARK — For Ruben Quinteros the news keeps getting worse. Quinteros, an immigrant detainee sitting in Delaney Hall in Newark, was picked up by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers seven days before he was due to get married last month.

He had overstayed his visa. Today, his lawyer received a fax from ICE rejecting his request for a Stay of Removal.

Quinteros and his fiance, Neida Lavayen have been together for two years and had planned to marry Sept. 23. Since her fiance was detained, Lavayen has been on a mission to marry Quinteros. But she’s hit roadblocks every step of the way.

She cannot find a clerk willing to travel into the detention center to issue a marriage license, which can only be obtained in person. And Quinteros is not permitted to leave the detention center, though ICE officials would permit a clerk to issue a license on site.

If he is married, Quinteros has a good chance of getting a green card and staying in the country, attorneys specializing in immigration law have said. ICE already has the travel papers to send Quinteros back to Uruguay, an ICE official said.