The year he turned 16, Dominican-born green-card holder Viterbo Liranzo became a U.S. citizenwithout his knowledge! Under the law then in effect, Liranzo acquired citizenship automatically when his mother was naturalized. But because the law didn’t require the government to issue him a certificate of citizenship unless he or his mother requested one, Liranzo didn’t know and had no proof of his status. For the next 30 years he continued to renew his green card.
Then, in 2005, Liranzo was convicted of a drug felony and served a sentence in New York state prison. Because Liranzo had continued to renew his green card, he was identified by the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) as a lawful permanent resident and taken into ICE custody after he served his prison sentence. Though he had by then become aware of his citizen status and attempted to explain to ICE agents, immigration proceedings were commenced. Liranzo and his attorney were eventually successful in proving his U.S. citizen status, and removal proceedings were terminated.
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