Illegal Marriage?

maggiek93

New Member
Jurisdiction
Louisiana
Asking on behalf my dad. Won't get into the details, but she's got mental issues (her kids got a court order to live with their dad) and she steals (i.e. dad got rear ended and the other insurance mailed him a check which she decided to cash). They've been married 6 years.

(1) My dad is 99% sure she's illegal. She came here legally on a visiting visa. But when that was expiring, she lied about abuse to get asylum. She got a fake birth certificate and fake police reports saying she was abused for her asylum case. Fake birth certificate says her mom is dead (when she's not), basically she didn't want to drag her mom into this mess because if the government in her country found out her daughter was making b/s abuse police reports they would probably arrest her mom too. Asked my dad if she's doing anything illegal now and he said "no, absolutely not".
If we report to ICE, do you think they would even care? She's been an US citizen for 10 years now. Obviously "abuse" is impossible to prove, but they can cross reference the birth certificate she provided on her asylum with her birth certificate on her visa or whatever else and see her asylum birth certificate is fake.

(2) My dad suspects she may have never actually divorced from her first husband. Said her husband cheated (I don't know if he cheated, in that country I think you are legally allowed to have more than one wife). Either way she felt embarrassed and came to the states. I told him if she's still married then technically it voids his marriage but he wasn't even interesting in getting a lawyer (he doesn't have one yet) to look into it. Basically said that country is so corrupt if you gave them $50 or $100 they'll do anything. Obviously if she gives a fake divorce certificate, we can very with that country. But dad made it sound like you can get a legit divorce certificate and have it back dated as long as you pay the government there. Not sure what to do here?
Don't think a court would approve of tapping her lines to see if she gets a fake. Her first husband is re-married and in the states, not sure if asking him would do anything.

(3) Is there anything else that would nullify the marriage? Not sure if we can bank on ICE deporting her. And not sure if she is/isn't legally divorced from her first marriage.


Dad makes well above 6 figures and this women has a minimum job, dad hasn't divorced because he's going to have to pay up. But said that she's becoming unbearable.
 
Asking on behalf my dad. Won't get into the details, but she's got mental issues (her kids got a court order to live with their dad) and she steals (i.e. dad got rear ended and the other insurance mailed him a check which she decided to cash). They've been married 6 years.

(1) My dad is 99% sure she's illegal. She came here legally on a visiting visa. But when that was expiring, she lied about abuse to get asylum. She got a fake birth certificate and fake police reports saying she was abused for her asylum case. Fake birth certificate says her mom is dead (when she's not), basically she didn't want to drag her mom into this mess because if the government in her country found out her daughter was making b/s abuse police reports they would probably arrest her mom too. Asked my dad if she's doing anything illegal now and he said "no, absolutely not".
If we report to ICE, do you think they would even care? She's been an US citizen for 10 years now. Obviously "abuse" is impossible to prove, but they can cross reference the birth certificate she provided on her asylum with her birth certificate on her visa or whatever else and see her asylum birth certificate is fake.

(2) My dad suspects she may have never actually divorced from her first husband. Said her husband cheated (I don't know if he cheated, in that country I think you are legally allowed to have more than one wife). Either way she felt embarrassed and came to the states. I told him if she's still married then technically it voids his marriage but he wasn't even interesting in getting a lawyer (he doesn't have one yet) to look into it. Basically said that country is so corrupt if you gave them $50 or $100 they'll do anything. Obviously if she gives a fake divorce certificate, we can very with that country. But dad made it sound like you can get a legit divorce certificate and have it back dated as long as you pay the government there. Not sure what to do here?
Don't think a court would approve of tapping her lines to see if she gets a fake. Her first husband is re-married and in the states, not sure if asking him would do anything.

(3) Is there anything else that would nullify the marriage? Not sure if we can bank on ICE deporting her. And not sure if she is/isn't legally divorced from her first marriage.


Dad makes well above 6 figures and this women has a minimum job, dad hasn't divorced because he's going to have to pay up. But said that she's becoming unbearable.
The longer Dad remains married the more he will have to "pay up". So he can either continue on as is or file for divorce. As Dad makes a tidy income he can afford to consult with an attorney to answer his legal questions.
 
(3) Is there anything else that would nullify the marriage? Not sure if we can bank on ICE deporting her. And not sure if she is/isn't legally divorced from her first marriage.

The fact that her first husband is remarried and living in the U.S. too suggests that indeed they did get a divorce, or at the very least he'll testify they did if asked assuming he is happy with his marriage. That's going to make proving bigamy difficult. If they were still married at the time she married your father, that would make the marriage void however.

Her immigration history is not grounds for annulling or voiding the marriage, though. It's possible her citizenship could be revoked if she lied to the government about facts that would have changed the immigration decision. So if she lied about the circumstances on which she based her asylum claim, maybe the government would move to revoke citizenship and kick her out. But I don't see telling the government her mother was dead when she's still alive as likely being relevant to the immigration decision, so that may not help. You can always give the info you have to ICE and see what the government does. But even if she ends up deported your father still needs a divorce to end the marriage unless he can prove bigamy.

I think it's likely that in the end he'll need to get that divorce. And it probably won't get any cheaper the longer he waits.
 
You mentioned more than once in your thread that your dad is unwilling to do anything about this matter...perhaps it's time for you to take the hint.
 
But when that was expiring, she lied about abuse to get asylum. She got a fake birth certificate and fake police reports saying she was abused for her asylum case.

How do you know she's lying? Were you present at all relevant times in her home country such that you have personal knowledge that no "abuse" occurred? How do you know that the birth certificate and police reports are fake?

Fake birth certificate says her mom is dead

That makes no sense. Unless a child is ripped from his/her dead mother's womb, the mother has to be alive at the time of birth (and who knows if some unknown foreign country would make a note about something unusual like that on the birth certificate).

If we report to ICE, do you think they would even care?

It's ICE's job to care about immigration fraud, which is what you've alleged. Rather obviously, the extent to which ICE will care in this particular situation will depend on the nature and quality of evidence you have to support your allegations.

Obviously if she gives a fake divorce certificate, we can very with that country. But dad made it sound like you can get a legit divorce certificate and have it back dated as long as you pay the government there. Not sure what to do here?

Despite your use of a question mark, there's no question here, and the vagueness of your post makes it impossible to say much of anything about your stepmother's alleged bigamy.

Is there anything else that would nullify the marriage?

Under Louisiana law, a court may grant an annulment on the following grounds: (1) bigamy; (2) incest (the spouses are related as first cousins or closer); (3) coercion, fraud or duress; (4) one or both spouses were minors at the time of marriage; (4) mental retardation; (5) intoxication at the time of marriage (presumably to the point of being unable to agree freely to be married); and (6) lack of presence or lack of a proper marriage ceremony. In your father's situation, it's possible that his wife's immigration issues might constitute fraud (but we don't have nearly enough facts to opine intelligently). And, of course, if your father can prove bigamy, that would allow for an annulment. None of the other grounds seem applicable.

Sounds like your father made an extremely poor decision to marry this woman. He should not compound his mistakes by relying information that you collect from anonymous strangers on the internet and, instead, should consult with a local family law attorney.
 
Regardless of whats happening if Dad is UNWILLING o take action its pointless. He should consult an Attorney to see what action are possible though if you can get him to at least do that.
 
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Thanks for the great feedback so far!

The longer Dad remains married the more he will have to "pay up". So he can either continue on as is or file for divorce. As Dad makes a tidy income he can afford to consult with an attorney to answer his legal questions.

He spoke to one a few months ago when she tried to attack him and he called the cops. Cops couldn't kick her out because "she lives here". Paralegal actually mentioned the if she's not divorced your marriage is void like it's elementary knowledge but the lawyer kind of waved him off. Not sure if the lawyer wanted to drag it into court for money or what.

The fact that her first husband is remarried and living in the U.S. too suggests that indeed they did get a divorce, or at the very least he'll testify they did if asked assuming he is happy with his marriage. That's going to make proving bigamy difficult. If they were still married at the time she married your father, that would make the marriage void however.

Her immigration history is not grounds for annulling or voiding the marriage, though. It's possible her citizenship could be revoked if she lied to the government about facts that would have changed the immigration decision. So if she lied about the circumstances on which she based her asylum claim, maybe the government would move to revoke citizenship and kick her out. But I don't see telling the government her mother was dead when she's still alive as likely being relevant to the immigration decision, so that may not help. You can always give the info you have to ICE and see what the government does. But even if she ends up deported your father still needs a divorce to end the marriage unless he can prove bigamy.

I think it's likely that in the end he'll need to get that divorce. And it probably won't get any cheaper the longer he waits.

Wife's husband re-married in that country and came to the USA just recently. As said before that country doesn't have rules and if they do have rules, you can buy your way out of it.

Her whole asylum case is fake. Her real reason is coming to the USA is because her husband cheated or wanted another women so she felt embarrassed/humiliated. Obviously this not a valid asylum case. She got fake police reports of abuse (again this is hard to prove), but the fact that her asylum birth certificate doesn't match up with her birth certificate on file is easy to prove. And the reason she used a fake mother's name is because she was using fake documents and if she got caught and exported back to the country she didn't want her real mom to be dragged into the mess of why are you using fake police reports in American and acting like we can't protect our women from abuse.

How do you know she's lying? Were you present at all relevant times in her home country such that you have personal knowledge that no "abuse" occurred? How do you know that the birth certificate and police reports are fake?

Nothing is 100%. But if ICE pulls her asylum file and matches with her birth certificate elsewhere they will see the two birth certificates are different. Then they can go down the rabbit hole of why she gave a fake birth certificate with mis-matching info .


That makes no sense. Unless a child is ripped from his/her dead mother's womb, the mother has to be alive at the time of birth (and who knows if some unknown foreign country would make a note about something unusual like that on the birth certificate).

Sorry meant the fake birth certificate has a fake mother's name. And she got a death certificate for this fake mother. Again, she was willing to fake the consequences of her country if got caught with fake abuse/police reports but didn't want to drag her mom into it.

It's ICE's job to care about immigration fraud, which is what you've alleged. Rather obviously, the extent to which ICE will care in this particular situation will depend on the nature and quality of evidence you have to support your allegations.



Despite your use of a question mark, there's no question here, and the vagueness of your post makes it impossible to say much of anything about your stepmother's alleged bigamy.

True, but the burden of proof lies with her. If she got divorced, not problem, prove it. If she did, not a problem, move on. For some reason you make it sound like we'll be sent to jail for even questioning her divorce.


Under Louisiana law, a court may grant an annulment on the following grounds: (1) bigamy; (2) incest (the spouses are related as first cousins or closer); (3) coercion, fraud or duress; (4) one or both spouses were minors at the time of marriage; (4) mental retardation; (5) intoxication at the time of marriage (presumably to the point of being unable to agree freely to be married); and (6) lack of presence or lack of a proper marriage ceremony. In your father's situation, it's possible that his wife's immigration issues might constitute fraud (but we don't have nearly enough facts to opine intelligently). And, of course, if your father can prove bigamy, that would allow for an annulment. None of the other grounds seem applicable.

(3) I feel like coercion, fraud or duress is impossible to get a judgement on, even though almost everyone might suggest this to some extent.

(6) lack of presence or lack of a proper marriage ceremony.
What do you mean by lack of presence? She sleeps outside. Some times on his porch. Some times at a public park. Like I said she has some serious mental issues. She has a key to the house. And I"m not sure if they have any marriage ceremony. I know he has got a marriage license.

Sounds like your father made an extremely poor decision to marry this woman. He should not compound his mistakes by relying information that you collect from anonymous strangers on the internet and, instead, should consult with a local family law attorney.

Meh, like I said my dad's probably a Debby Downer. His first marriage to my wife, he thought he was going to get away with $1,000/month. He didn't have a prenup. It's just what marriage rules in that country is. Courts didn't care about marriage rules in that country and he thinks they could careless about her past marriage or divorce (if she had one).

He did see an attorney who said it's impossible to kick a wife out of the house. Attorney didn't care about her divorce. He wanted to file for a divorce and wanted my dad to show all his finances by the first court date. Dad just walked out....obviously there is no benefit to him by showing all his finances.
 
The legal reality is that it would be nigh impossible to prove what you are alleging. That's why the attorney is suggesting a simple divorce. Your dad will have to show his finances (as will his wife).

Please tell your dad to go to an attorney.
 
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