Georgia legislator’s wife in hiding, faces deportation

ATLANTA — The wife of a Georgia legislator known as an outspoken advocate for immigration rights is in hiding after federal agents came to their home with a deportation order, her lawyer said.

Sascha Herrera, the wife of Democratic state Sen. Curt Thompson, was ordered deported after she missed a federal court hearing in February 2005, her lawyer, Charles Kuck, said.

Kuck said he planned to ask an immigration judge Monday to reconsider the order calling for her deportation, though it could take as long as a month before a decision is made.

During that time, Kuck said Herrera could be deported if caught.

Thompson, 37, a Democrat from Atlanta, married Herrera, 28, in April. In a written statement, Thompson said he checked his wife’s immigration status before they were wed, and they believed she was here legally from her native Colombia because she has a valid student visa.

Kuck said Herrera was victim of a notary public who posed as a lawyer and filed an asylum application without her consent. The notary then listed his business as the address, and all notices were sent there instead of to Herrera’s home, prompting the woman to miss an important hearing, Kuck said.