US immigration holds newlywed army spouse despite marriage: NYT

Her detention has been rare for spouses of US citizens and highlights shifting enforcement practices

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement has detained the wife of an Army staff sergeant days after their wedding when the couple sought to file paperwork at a Louisiana base, The New York Times reports.

Agents took Annie Ramos, 22, into federal custody shortly after she married Matthew Blank, 23, who is due to begin training for deployment in the coming weeks, the American daily said.

Ramos, an undocumented immigrant from Honduras, was brought to the United States as a toddler and is a college student with no criminal history.

Experts told the US-based newspaper that such enforcement has been uncommon in similar cases.

“When US citizens marry undocumented immigrants, their spouses become eligible for legal permanent residency through marriage, and they can apply for citizenship three years after receiving their green card,” the report quoted experts as saying.

“Even those with a prior deportation order, often issued when they were children, are not typically detained and are able to adjust their immigration status.”

The Department of Homeland Security, however, defended the action.

“She has no legal status to be in this country and was issued a final order of removal by a judge,” a spokesperson said. “This administration is not going to ignore the rule of law.”