Last week, U.S. Representative Mike Thompson (CA-04) sat down with a constituent and DACA recipient from California’s Fourth Congressional District who was denied entry back into the U.S. for weeks after a trip to Mexico due to a clerical error by U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services.

DACA stands for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals. It does not provide for permanent citizenship for impacted individuals.

The constituent, who is identified only as Jane Doe to remain anonymous, sat down with Rep. Thompson to discuss the harrowing incident and how Thompson and his team were able to intervene to bring her home.

Watch the video here.

“Through no fault of her own, Jane was wrongfully denied re-entry from Mexico into the United States due to a paperwork error made by U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services,” said Thompson. “It’s sad that the federal government can make an error that causes a legal resident of the United States — in this case, my constituent — to have to miss three weeks of work, stay in a foreign country, and leave her family without their sole breadwinner for weeks. It took my office, my staff, and myself to intervene to get her home.

He added, “Constituent services are an important part of my job and my staff and I are dedicated to helping all of our constituents on any matters they have with the federal government.”

When she was stranded in Mexico, Jane said she reached out to Congressman Thompson, and he and his team listened to her story, supported her and provided her with help to solve her situation.

“If not for them, I don't think I would be here today. Thank you for everything,” she said.

On March 26, Jane Doe contacted Thompson’s Washington, D.C. office to ask for help from the Congressman and his team.

Jane had traveled to Mexico legally after being granted an I-131 petition which allows a DACA recipient to leave the country and return for a justified reason. Jane filed her paperwork on time and without errors, and was granted the petition before leaving for her trip.

At the conclusion of her trip, Jane was denied entry onto the plane to fly home to the North Bay. Border patrol officials pointed out that the paperwork sent to Jane by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, or USCIS, listed the wrong dates for her return, despite Jane filing for the correct dates.

Thompson’s office intervened to inquire with the USCIS San Francisco office as well as Customs & Border Control.

Thompson and his team worked through USCIS to have Jane’s documents reissued and coordinated to have them couriered to Jane in Mexico. She was able to fly home on Saturday, April 27.

Fourth District residents who face issues with passports and visas, veterans’ benefits, IRS issues, agricultural issues, small business assistance, immigration, Medicare and Medicaid, or any other problem navigating the federal government are encouraged to contact Rep. Thompson’s nearest office for support:

• Napa: 707-226-9898.
• Santa Rosa: 707-542-7182.
• Woodland: 530-753-3501.
• Washington: 202-225-3311.

Thompson represents California’s Fourth Congressional District, which includes all or part of Lake, Napa, Solano, Sonoma and Yolo counties.