Rogelio Servin, 32, entered the U.S. with his family when he was child. Even though Servin did not have proper documentation to cross the border from Mexico, he was determined to have entered legally because an immigration officer waved his family through without questioning them. His family had been prepared to explain to the immigration officer that they wished to enter the country to visit their other son who had been severely burned in an accident and was being treated at Shriners Hospital in San Francisco. Servin remained in the country, married his wife and they had three chlildren.
However, Servin was arrested for drunken driving last year. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security placed Servin in deportation proceedings after learning of his arrest, arguing that he had been convicted of a prior felony and had entered the country illegally.
The 2010 BIA decision that helped Servin avoid deportation applies to undocumented immigrants who entered the country without sneaking over the border. Immigrants who arrive in the U.S. without documentation and who are immediate relatives of U.S. citizens may be entitled to seek legal permanent resident status if they traveled to the U.S. openly through a customs border and were permitted entry. This ruling does not apply to undocumented immigrants who evade customs officials by crossing into the country through mountains, deserts, and rivers.
Servin successfully argued his case and "was judged to have come in legally because he was 'inspected and admitted' and he was awarded his green card because he was his family's sole supporter," according to the article.
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