Soldier’s Widow and Son Facing Deportation Over Ancient Law

Sgt. Michael Ferschke passed away in the Iraq War in 2008, leaving his wife, Hotaru Ferschke and infant son behind. Hotaru now faces the risk of her and her son being forced out of the country due to a law that was passed over 50 years ago that claims their marriage isn’t valid.

Michael and Hotaru met at a party when he was stationed in Okinawa, Japan a year before he was deployed. The Marine radio operator knew no Japanese, and the young woman didn’t speak English, but they quickly bonded.

“He called me after they met and he goes, ‘Mom, I am in love,’” says Robin Ferschke.

The pair dated for over a year before Michael, 22, came down on military orders for Iraq. He quickly proposed and the couple began trying for a baby.

2 weeks after his departure, Hotaru discovered she was expecting, which prompted a hasty marriage, so that the expectant mother could immediately begin receiving military health benefits reserved for family members of soldiers.

Due to the special conditions of the matter, the couple opted for a proxy wedding, which has been used for years in the military when a bride and groom are separated by war.

Every country has different rules for proxy marriages, with some stating a couple may marry over the phone and others stating an actual person to stand in place of the missing party during the ceremony.

In the Ferschke’s case, the Japanese governments allows engaged couples to produce sworn-in affidavits as proof of their right to tie the knot legally, and mandates they must register with the government. Hotaru and Michael filled out the necessary paperwork on each end and submitted the papers to the government. On July 10th, their marriage was finalized.

One month later Michael Ferschke was killed in combat during a house search.

Proxy marriages are accepted by the U.S. military for war-torn couples and even provides support in taking part in one.

Such was the case with the Ferschke’s and the Marine Corps is also providing Hotaru with survivor benefits, but as she applied for permanent residency in the U.S., the pregnant widow was denied due to the Immigration office not recognizing her marriage as valid.

Passed in 1952, the Immigration and Nationality Act was passed to the curb marriage and immigration fraud and states that the definition of spouse does not constitute a “wife or husband by reason of any marriage ceremony where the contracting parties thereto are not physically present in the presence of each other, unless the marriage shall have been consummated.”

It is clear that a consummation took place, due to Hotaru’s pregnancy, but the legal loophole is that is happened before the actual ceremony occurred.

“It’s supposed to prevent people from marrying somebody they are not really intending to have a life with. The law essentially requires them to have met after the marriage,” said Margaret Stock, a lawyer of the American Immigration Lawyers Association.

“What’s odd about this case is that it appears the consummation part of the law was already met, but it was prior to the marriage.”

A private bill put forth by Oregon Representative John Duncan this summer has inspired some hope for the Ferschke family, but each step taken is still a slap to the face in regards to the events that led them here.

“We still have a hard time accepting this,” Robin Ferschke said. “We’re trying to go forward, celebrate his life, but then every time we turn around we get a constant reminder.”

Hotaru and baby Michael the 3rd, are living with her inlaws in Marysville, Oregon, in the Smoky Mountains. They are able to reside in the U.S. on a temporary visa for now and are biding their time, hoping against hope that there will be some reform to the law before the visa runs out and they have to return to Japan in January.

“She’s like my daughter,” Robin Ferschke said. “I know my child chose the perfect wife and mother of his child.”