Ripped apart from his family: Local man's incredible story

"Definitely a happy day," she says of her wedding day. "Best day of my life."
Reported by: Jamie Smith
Set Text Size SmallSet Text Size MediumSet Text Size LargeSet Text Size X-Large
Share
Updated: 11/07/2012 12:32 am
JACKSONVILLE (ActionNewsJax.com) -- From the moment they met, Kathleen Hale knew she would marry Cesar Lopez.

"Definitely a happy day," she says of her wedding day. "Best day of my life."

The young couple met as teens while working at a Christian mission in St. Augustine.  They fell in love, then married in July of 2010.

They started a life together--then, created one.

That's right, Kathleen--is pregnant.  "I'm feeling good," she told our Jamie Smith while just a few weeks away from her due date.  "It's been a good pregnancy."

Kathleen kept regular doctor's appointments, finished her nursery, got ready to welcome her baby girl "Mia" into the world.  Everything should be perfect--but there is one major complication.

Kathleen's husband Cesar is stranded in Mexico.  Forbidden to come back to the United States.


Newlywed Nightmare

Cesar has been deported back to Mexico. Speaking to Action News via Skype, he describes how his mother smuggled him into the U.S. when he was just 5 years old.

During the dangerous border cross, they were caught.  "They let us go," he said.  "As soon as they let us go, we tried again to cross back."

Cesar's mother would not give up her American dream. She crossed with Cesar again--and this time, her plan worked.

Cesar grew up in America, went to American schools, worked at local churches.  Then met--and married an American girl.  

"I wasn't thinking I'm going to be completely separated from my husband in a year and half," said Kathleen.  "Never know when I'm going to see him again."






 
Cesar and Kathleen Lopez
Cesar and Kathleen Lopez
"It was like somebody pulled my heart out and took my breath away," said Kathleen. "Because this is my best friend. This is my husband."
Trying to do the right thing

Months after they married, Cesar and Kathleen decided to straighten out his citizenship mess.  The pair spent thousands of dollars these missionaries could barely afford on a complicated, expensive immigration process.  Nearly at the end, immigration officials told Cesar they needed him to do one more thing before his paperwork could go through.

He had to book a flight to Juarez, Mexico and sit for final interviews at the American consulate.  Back at home--Kathleen waited anxiously for word from her husband.  

This is the news she got instead: "He said honey, they told me I cannot come back for ten years, and I'm like--do they not care?  You have a wife at home. Our anniversary is in two days!"

The state department ordered Cesar removed from the U.S. then banned him for a decade.

"It was like somebody pulled my heart out and took my breath away," said Kathleen.  "Because this is my best friend.  This is my husband."

Even though Cesar is married to an American woman, anyone like him who lived in the U.S. illegally for more than a year automatically triggers a ten-year re-entry bar.  

"I literally cried so hard my body ached because he wasn't there when I went to bed and I knew he wouldn't be there when I woke up," said Kathleen.

"Being a Christian, you always have hope. I never in my life felt hopeless.  But I did at that point."


Cesar and Kathleen Lopez
Cesar and Kathleen Lopez
"I see the kind of life that the majority of people have here," Cesar said. "It's just complete poverty."
How can this happen?

Now, Cesar is stuck in Juarez, Mexico.  A far cry from his comfortable St. Augustine home.

We asked him---now that he lives in Mexico--did he understand why his mother snuck him into the U.S. as a young boy?  "Yes, yes, sir. I see the kind of life that the majority of people have here," Cesar said.  "It's just complete poverty."

Appeals to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration services went ignored, petitions for help to lawmakers went unanswered. And as Kathleen readies herself to become a mom--she can't help but feel cheated. For herself, and for Cesar.  

"When I get an ultrasound, he doesn't get to see her move. He doesn't get to feel her kick."

On Skype, we asked Cesar--had he thought of coming back to the U.S. illegally to see his daughter's birth?  It took him a while to answer.

"Honestly, I've thought about it."

But he says he won't--no matter how tempting, because he's a Christian, and he wants to get home to his wife and child the right way.

"It would be a life of looking over your shoulder and knowing that you did things wrong. That's not the right thing to do. I don't think the Lord would honor it if we did that."

This is part one of a three-part story series on Action News.  Tune into our special reports each night at 10 on FOX30 and 11 on CBS47.







What you can do

Kathleen and Cesar are reaching out to Lawmakers for help.  You can help this family by voicing your support for them with our local congressmen and congresswomen.  Here is contact information for our U.S. Senators if you would like to reach out on behalf of this family.

Sen. Marco Rubio

Website: rubio.senate.gov

Washington, D.C. Office:

317 Hart Senate Office Building,
District of Columbia 20510-0903
Phone: (202) 224-3041
Fax: (202) 228-0285

Jacksonville Office:
1650 Prudential Drive, Suite 220
Jacksonville, Florida 32207
Phone: (904) 398-8586

Sen. Bill Nelson

Website: billnelson.senate.gov

Washington, D.C. Office:

716 Hart Senate Office Building,
District of Columbia 20510-0905
Phone: (202) 224-5274
Fax: (202) 228-2183

Jacksonville Office:
1301 Riverplace Boulevard, Suite 2010
Jacksonville, Florida 32207
Phone: (904) 346-4500
Fax: (904) 346-4506





Share
7 Comment(s)
Comments: Show | Hide

Here are the most recent story comments.View All

The views expressed here do not necessarily represent those of Action News Jacksonville

brat01 - 10/29/2012 8:45 AM
0 Votes
I do not know this family but my sister does. This is a sad story. I could see if he was 25 years old when he came over that he should be held accountable but he was a 5 year old kid that had to follow his mother. I do know another couple that went through this and her husband was home in 18 months. The attorney information for that case has been given to this family so please pray, pray that this daughter will have her daddy back, pray that this wife will have her husband back, pray that it will not take 10 years to return to normal for this family. God is working and will not let this family down, his Will is being done and I feel confident that it will be a LOT sooner than 10 years. Kathleen, keep your chin up you will get your best friend back one day and it will be wonderful.

HiTechRdnk - 10/27/2012 3:40 PM
0 Votes
Nunya, do you know this couple personally? Do you know Cesar, and everything he's been through? I know him, and your comments are way off base. I suggest if you don't know everything, you keep your ignorant comments to yourself.

Brandie - 10/27/2012 12:52 AM
0 Votes
AFirst of all, she cannot "just go there with him". This Mexico wecare talking about, not Canada. Drug cartels down there are under the misconception tht all Americans are rich. She and her new baby girl would be in danger of kidnapping and horrible things at the hand if these cartels. I know missionaries who had to come home to the states because of this. U really expect them to move there? Wld u put ur wife, daughter, sister in tht position? I think not!!! Living in the states contributing to his community, whether "legal" or not is better than these lazy good for nothing Americans sitting around their in their gov. Housing and getting government checks and eating food bought by tax payers. Who is the real criminal here? Someone who works to provide for his family and gives back to his community or the one sitting on there butt supported by the tax payers and the government? The Bible says if a man doesn't work, he doesn't eat. Just saying.

Logos Aletheia - 10/26/2012 2:27 PM
2 Votes
We need to be very clear here about American immigration law. The people supporting a strict interpretation of American immigration law want exactly what has occurred to Cesar to happen to everyone in his case situation. They really don't give a care who the individual people are, what their lives and/or family situations are, when the law was broken, the fact that kids like Cesar are "American" in every sense of the word except legal status. People in favor of strict enforcement WANT individuals and families PUNISHED this way, punished hard, punished fast, punished for not just ten years, really -- forever. They want them gone forever from America with NO chance to return. And especially, by using the 10 year rule, they want to make it virtually impossible for someone wanting to do things right like Cesar to ever become a citizen -- they WANT someone to "pay" for the illegal immigration "crime" committed by the child's parents in bringing the kid in illegally, and if the kid is the one to pay, that's exactly what the strict enforcers WANT to happen. They WANT the families, the wives and children of these "horrible illegals" to be deported also, because the next generation of children are these "horrible" anchor babies that are "taking things away" from natural born American children. They want the laws changed so no child would ever be entitled to American citizenship just by being born here. The problem with that is -- how many generations should we go back saying the 1st generation child is illegal? Two generations? Three generations? How many families have grandparents/great-grandparents who were from other countries and entered America someplace or sometime not through Ellis Island-type circumstances? Change the laws to allow for a 1 year citizenship route for all immigrants having grown up in the USA wanting it. They're Americans already just without the birth certificate. If Obama can be Pres without a legit cert - what's different?

Tommy Thompson - 10/26/2012 12:42 PM
0 Votes
You two above are correct. In the meantime, she could go there to be with him and fight it out during the wait. Our laws here make no sense at all. However, the option of going there is viable to a point. The violence is reason enough to want to be here.

Realchange - 10/26/2012 10:04 AM
1 Vote
I think people are ignoring the old law that the government is destroying. You marry an American Citizen you ARE an American Citizen. He's not committed some henious crime. Unless you consider chasing his version of the American dream a crime now. I am sure if he was Cuban being deported back to Cuba Rubio would be up in arms then about it. Since this story made news I am sure something should happen for them. Their story made the news so it will get addressed. To bad things like Desert storm veterans made sick and their country refusing to give them a fair an impartial jury trial is not news.

Erick Bell - 10/26/2012 8:46 AM
1 Vote
Do I think that people should illegally cross the broder, NO. However, his mother brought him here when he was young, and now he is trying to correct the mistake. He is married to wonderful woman and has a beautiful daughter. Before everyone say's he was taking someones job rewatch the story and you will see that he worked as a missonary (a job that no one wants to do.) Please be consider if this was your children's family, would you feel the same way?
Inergize Digital This site is hosted and managed by Inergize Digital.
Mobile advertising for this site is available on Local Ad Buy.