False I-9 Prevents Man From Getting Green Card

March 5, 2012 by Matthew

On February 23, 2012, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit denied a petition for review in Crocock v. Holder. I found it to be a sad case. Before he applied for a green card, Mr. Crocock had a job where he filled out an I-9 form and indicated that he was a United States citizen. The I-9 is the form that employers are required to make their employees fill out to make sure that they are legally permitted to work in the United States. Holding oneself out as a United States citizen is a bar to getting a green card. It is also a ground for being placed in deportation proceedings before an immigration judge. The Second Circuit held that he was barred from getting a green card and upheld his deportation order. I wish that I could criticize the decision or say that the Second Circuit was wrong. However, the Second Circuit was 100% correct. The immigration laws are very clear that falsely claiming to be a United States citizen carries very harsh penalties. Many people who are illegal in this country have false papers, in order to work illegally. This case is a wake up call to undocumented aliens about the dangers of using false papers and lying, in order to work illegally. When you lie about being a United States citizen, you are putting yourself in a position where you will never be able to get a green card. While this case involved an undocumented alien that claimed to be a citizen, lawful permanent residents that falsely claim to be a U.S. citizen also face severe immigration penalties.

Comments

Pat says

May 24, 2012 at 7:32 pm

I was not aware of this law until a recent incident involving a someone I know personally who falsely claimed to be a US Citizen. I have two points to make regarding this:
1. Unforgivable to me is extreme — A penalty, a fine, a slap on the wrist are all okay. But unforgivable? Is our government God? No. In my mind these cases should be judged on an individual basis.
2. I recently asked a lawyer how the interview could have been saved if the immigrant would have hired a lawyer prior to the interview. The answer I received is of concern to me. His response was that he would have advised his client, when asked what box he signed on the I-9 form, to look down at the floor and mumble. The lawyer said that chances are the immigration officer would have moved on and not pressed for an answer. What this says to me is that, if a lawyer is involved, one can ignore the answer and the papers will be pushed thru without a problem.
I am heartbroken that this happens to people who are trying to get their lives in order. What it says to me is that many immigrants have falsely claimed citizenship but they have not been caught. It is sad that those trying to get their life straight by being honest with our immigration department and penalized. What can be done about this law? Please help me understand. Thank you.
- Matthew says
  
  May 25, 2012 at 6:04 pm
  
  Unfortunately, there is not much that can be done. As you point out, the law is “unforgivable.” Unless Congress changes the law and permits a waiver for this, non-citizens who make this mistake will be barred forever from getting green cards. One of the reasons that I posted this blog was with the hope that undocumented aliens might see it and learn from it that they should be careful filling out I-9 forms. As for the response from the lawyer, I don’t think that his suggestion was either ethical or practical. I do not believe that the examiner would move on without a question being answered. I’m also guessing that this case probably did not come about through questioning. My suspicion is that the examiner must have contacted the employer and asked about the I-9. In all of my years of practicing immigration law, I don’t ever remember anyone being asked about what they put on their I-9 where they worked.