For those veterans who are facing deportation, it is often the final blow to a long and arduous journey of previous mistakes and misfortunes. Many of them have suffered from PTSD-related issues, drug and alcohol abuse prior to their arrest and incarceration, and by the time they are approached by ICE, most often during their prison term, it might seem things can't possibly get any worse. They’re proved wrong once again.

It is easy to draw a line, and the proponents of existing immigration laws often do so if you break the law, you get deported. Unfortunately, it’s not that simple and the system fails the people it’s deporting a few times before this final and often irreversible sentence of deportation. Often they mislead with promises of citizenship, are unable to provide help for post-service illnesses and fail to confront other life-changing conditions that come as a consequence of military service.

Undoubtedly, the veterans who have been deported have had opportunities to obtain citizenship. Some of them have postponed naturalization, some were in the process and a few were under the impression that they were already naturalized. Partially, the confusion comes from simply not understanding the process of naturalization and not knowing immigration laws.