In brief
Deisy Rivera Ortega, the wife of U.S. Army Sergeant Jose Serrano, was detained during a routine appointment with immigration services, marking a shift in how the military families are treated under new immigration policies. After a recent policy change by the Department of Homeland Security, military families may no longer receive leniency regarding immigration violations. Rivera Ortega, who is currently in custody, claims she was arrested without a warrant and is fighting her potential deportation to Mexico, where she has no connections.
SANTA FE, N.M. (Flux Daily) — Deisy Rivera Ortega, the wife of U.S. Army Sergeant Jose Serrano, is currently being detained at an immigration facility in El Paso, Texas, as the Biden administration appears to be reversing leniency extended to military family members regarding immigration enforcement.
Jose Serrano, an active-duty soldier with three tours in Afghanistan, witnessed the arrest of his wife on April 14 while they were at an appointment with immigration services aimed at securing her permanent residency. “A person opened the door, escorted us through the hallway, and at the end of the hallway, my wife got arrested,” Serrano recounted. “Arrested without any order, any warrant ... They took away my wife. They don’t tell me anything.”
Rivera Ortega, originally from El Salvador, has contested her detention in U.S. District Court and is seeking an injunction against her deportation to Mexico — a country where she has no ties and where visits from active-duty U.S. forces are limited.
Her attorney, Matthew James Kozik, noted that Rivera Ortega possesses a valid work permit and had previously been given a withholding of removal order to El Salvador.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, Rivera Ortega entered the U.S. illegally in 2016, and a judge issued a final removal order in December 2019. While the agency acknowledged her work authorization, it clarified that it does not grant any legal status to remain in the U.S. Rivera Ortega remains in ICE custody while awaiting potential removal.
Last April, the Department of Homeland Security removed the previous “parole in place” policy, which allowed for expedited residency pathways for spouses of military members. The new framework states that military service does not shield individuals from immigration violations.
Serrano visited Rivera Ortega at the El Paso Service Processing Center, managing to speak to his wife through a plastic pane, as they both navigate the uncertainties of her detention and the implications of changing immigration policies.
