Posted on 11/04/2007 3:19:13 PM PST by lizol
Stratford woman fights deportation to Poland
RICHARD WEIZEL
Article Last Updated: 11/03/2007 11:16:52 PM EDT
STRATFORD — Three years ago Polish citizens Adam and Renata Laszczak believed they were about to realize the American Dream.
Then, suddenly, it became more like an American tragedy.
After emigrating in 1998 from Miechow, a town just outside Crocow, the young couple were married in the United States and by 2004 were the proud parents of twin seven-month old girls.
Adam worked for a construction company in Fairfield, while Renata took care of the twins, Angelica and Jessica.
Adam, who was legally in the U.S. via sponsorship by his employer, was in the final phase of obtaining a green card and Renata was part of the application.
But on Nov. 9, 2004 Adam Laszczak was crushed to death under the wheels of a friend's car in what Stratford police described as an accident. Police said Laszczak was killed while preparing to make repairs to the car, which suddenly went out of control.
He died a short time later at Bridgeport Hospital.
Now, Renata Laszczak, is fighting deportation.
"All I want to do is stay in this country with my two girls, it is the only place they know as home and we all want to be close to where my husband is buried," Renata Laszczak, 29, said last week during an interview at her Success Avenue home.
Breaking down in sobs and burying her head in her hands, the petite blonde woman said she and her 3 year old daughters often visit Adam's gravesite at St Michael's Cemetery.
"Of course they don't remember their father, but it is Advertisement comforting to all of us to be near him," she said. "I have been in this country nine years and it is my home. In Poland there are no jobs and things are not good economically. I wish to stay and be able to give my daughters a good future."
She also wants to stay because of her elderly father, a U.S. citizen from Bridgeport, who with serious kidney disease relies on Renata to take him to a clinic for dialysis treatment three times a week.
"There are so many reasons I need to stay and want to stay," Laszczak said.
But that may not be possible.
In December 2005, Laszczak was informed by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Office that her application for a green card had been denied because her husband was the primary applicant. The letter states that because he had died, the Immigration and Nationality Act did not provide for her to be considered.
"If you fail to depart from the United States, proceedings will be instituted to enforce your departure," a March 9, 2006 follow-up letter states. "You entered the United States on Oct. 3, 1998 as a visitor. You overstayed your period of lawful admission." A deportation hearing has been scheduled for Dec. 6 in Hartford.
Attorney Anthony Collins of Wethersfield, who specializes in immigration law and is representing Laszczak, said immigration laws were tightened up by Congress in 1996 and are "extremely complex and cumbersome.
But he said there is still hope his client can remain in the United States.
"People don't realize that these kinds of things happen all the time because of the tough laws Congress has given us," Collins said. "The laws pertaining to Renata's case are very complicated, but there are legal avenues we hope can still allow her to remain in this country." Collins said he did not want to publicly speak about those avenues or his planned legal arguments prior to the hearing. "If people want to keep these things from happening they should contact their congressmen and women and urge them to change the laws," he said.
Shawn Saucier, a spokesman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, a branch of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security which makes the legal determination if a person is eligible for immigration benefits, said privacy laws prevent his agency from publicly commenting in detail about any specific case.
However, Saucier said an immigration judge does have the authority, depending on evidence presented, to make a favorable ruling.
"We would like to help," Saucier said. "But the final decision will be up to a judge."
Marek Drelichowski, a friend of Renata who has been a U.S. citizen for more than 40 years after emigrating from Poland with his family in 1962, said it would be "a great hardship for Renata and her daughters to be forced out of this country.
"If her husband had not died they would not have had a problem staying here and eventually becoming citizens," said Drelichowski, a Shelton resident who tutors and teaches Polish immigrant to speak English.
"It was devastating to lose her husband, but forcing her to leave and perhaps never have the chance to visit his grave again would be unbearable," he said.
Laszczak said because her daughters were born in the United States they are automatically considered citizens, and could stay even if she were deported.
"But that would be impossible," she said. "They already lost their father. It would ruin their lives to lose their mother too.
America: Non-Mexicans need not apply.
Somebody quick contact the Polish Consulate/Embassy and get Renata a job there — then she has Diplomatic immunity as part of the Consular Staff.
She should immediately change her name to Lopez and start speaking Spanish
The Poles are the new Europe. Hardworking, intelligent,
and have helped America from WW2 through the War on Terror.
Unfortunately, the President and the traitors in Congress
only favor Mexican criminals.
Another sad story of bureaucracy gone mad in an attempt to turn the public against all deportations.
This situation is just another sign about our broken immigration system. Unless negative publicity forces the hand of the immigration office, she will be forced to leave. Meanwhile, the 13 (or 16) year old kid will be given full legal status (along with his family) to remain so that he can testify against his former teacher. His family will then sue the school district and win millions.
>> Adam, who was legally in the U.S. via sponsorship by his employer, was in the final phase of obtaining a green card and Renata was part of the application.
Was Adam, God rest his soul, protesting in the streets waving Poland’s flag?
Boot out 10 Mexicans and let her stay. Mexicans have abused our immigration laws 1000 more than Polish have. I also consider her more culturally compatible, she obviously speaks English
I thought this is one of the reasons we have congressmen.
To champion cases where the laws they make fail.
This is ridiculous.
Those who follow the rules and try to do the right thing are punished, those who deliberately break the law are ‘victims’ that politicians will twist themselves into knots to rationalize and excuse.
Our US government is pathetic.
This woman should contact Joe Lieberman and,if she’s in Shay’s district,him as well.With a US citizen father who’s in poor health needing assistance and support as well as two small US citizen kids there’s no way that she should be deported.
If her father is a legal citizen why can’t she be sponsored by him? I don’t understand why you punish this woman when she at least from the start was doing this the right way. And as for Poland being an ally, that is so true. They have shown more loyalty and fortitude in the WOT than just about anyone. Mexico on the other hand had done squat and I seem to remember they have voted against us on issues in the UN.
I agree. They were going about it LEGALLY.
Meanwhile our “representatives” want to extend shamnesty to ILLEGALS who come and go as they please and NEVER tried to apply LEGALLY. It’s mindbogglingly.
This is ridiculous.
Those who follow the rules and try to do the right thing are punished, those who deliberately break the law are ‘victims’ that politicians will twist themselves into knots to rationalize and excuse.
Our US government is pathetic.
WELL SAID!
This is obviously racially biased against white Europeans.
Mexican felons would be released to roam society
What do you want to bet they are picking on honest, hard-working people like this, to deport, to show us (we who derailed the Amnesty Shamnesty) that we are SO MEAN.
As the husband (and sponsor) of a legal immigrant from Ukraine, this story really angers me. The government will pull out all the stops to make sure that this woman is deported (as they would do to my wife if I was suddenly killed) yet Jose with his 12 DUIs is given a pass because, as I keep hearing over and over again, "The government just does not have the money and resources to deport criminals."
Change your name to Gonzales...
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