Active Military Spouse Faces Removal Proceedings

The newlywed couple thought they were doing “everything the right way” by reporting to the base to start their lives together.

The wife of a United States Army staff sergeant was released from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody yesterday, but still faces removal proceedings after being detained inside a Louisiana military base last week.

Matthew Blank, a 23-year-old who's been enlisted for five years, and Annie Ramos, a 22-year-old undocumented immigrant who entered the country when she was a toddler, married in March, according to The New York Times. The newlywed couple planned to live together in Fort Polk, Louisiana, before training began at the end of the month for deployment, Blank told the Times. But when they arrived on the military base on April 2 to begin the process of Ramos' acquiring a military ID, military spouse benefits, and ultimately a green card, "instead," Blank said, "she got ripped away from me."

Ramos was born in Honduras, but came to the United States when she was less than two years old and was issued an order of removal in 2005 when her family failed to appear for immigration court hearings, reports the Associated Press. In 2020, Ramos applied for the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals but told the A.P. her application was stalled due to ongoing legal challenges to end the program.

"I knew she didn't have status," Blank told the Times, but said they "were doing everything the right way," including hiring an immigration attorney. But since President Donald Trump kicked off his mass deportation campaign, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has adopted a new policy that "military service alone does not exempt aliens from the consequences of violating U.S. immigration laws."

In a statement to the Times, the DHS said Ramos was arrested after attempting to enter a military base with no legal status and having been issued a final order of removal. "This administration is not going to ignore the rule of law," the statement continued. 

After spending five days in ICE detention, Ramos, a college biochemistry student with no criminal record, was released on an order of supervision and a GPS ankle monitor, according to the DHS' statement to CBS News. However, removal proceedings against her are ongoing. 

This is not the first time military spouses seeking legal status have ended up in ICE detention. Last May, Paola Clouatre, the wife of a disabled military veteran, was detained following her green card interview in New Orleans, Louisiana. Clouatre, the then 25-year-old mother of two young children with no criminal record, similarly entered the U.S. as a child and received an order of removal after her estranged mother failed to appear for immigration hearings. Clouatre was detained for two months and eventually released with an ankle monitor with the help of Sen. John Kennedy (R–La.). 

Trump's policies have been criticized by both immigration and military family advocates alike. Not only does the Trump administration's policy disincentivize undocumented immigrants from cooperating with government institutions, "it's bad for morale," Margaret Stock, a military immigration law expert, told the A.P. "It doesn't make any sense—they're going to get arrested for following the law?" 

It's no wonder that Trump's immigration enforcement campaign has become so unpopular. And although some policies have begun to change under the new Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, more changes are necessary to rebuild the public's trust.