A United States Army veteran who suffers from PTSD from serving two tours in Afghanistan has been deported to Mexico. Father-of-two Miguel Perez Jr., 39, was escorted across the border from Texas and handed over to Mexican authorities Friday, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said.
This deportation decision came after Perez was denied U.S. citizenship because of a 2008 drug conviction, which he says was caused by his PTSD. Perez had lived in the United States as a legal permanent resident since age 11 but was never granted citizenship,
One of Perez’ supporters has been United States Senator Tammy Duckworth, D-IL., an Army veteran who lost both her legs while serving in Iraq.
“Mr. Perez has been detained for months, separated from his family and left without access to the care he needs, deserves and has earned. If the military and our government hadn’t failed Mr. Perez multiple times, he’d never have been in this predicament to begin with,” Duckworth said in a statement. “He earned the opportunity to remain in this country when he vowed to defend it in our military, but today’s decision is yet another example of our nation failing him once more.”
