Costa Rican Family in Deportation Case to Leave U.S.
By DAVID A. LIEB, Associated Press

For years, the Gonzalez family has been living with uncertainty as they waged a public campaign against deportation to their native Costa Rica.

Now, more than 13 years after arriving on six-month visitor visas, the family has run out of options — barring passage of a special law in Congress.

Marvin and Marina Gonzalez and their daughter, Marie, have lost their legal appeal and have 30 days to leave voluntarily, with the possibility of a short-term extension. They are preparing to leave by June 5.

The couple came to the United States in 1991 as tourists but wanted to make a new home for Marie, now 19. They settled in Jefferson City, Misouri, where they found jobs and eventually saw their daughter graduate from high school with honors.

Their status became known when federal officials learned of Marvin Gonzalez' firing by then-Gov. Bob Holden in news reports. Gonzalez worked as a courier and mail opener, and the governor's office had received a tip that Gonzalez was in the country illegally.

The Gonzalezes had pleaded through the media and politicians to be granted an exception so they could remain. They turned to the public again Tuesday, urging supporters to keep lobbying the state's congressional delegation on their behalf.

"I ask that I not be taken away from my friends, from the future I want to have in this place," Marie Gonzalez said at a news conference at the state Capitol. "To us, this country is our home."

Spokesmen for Republican Sens. Kit Bond and Jim Talent expressed sympathy but said the senators would not intervene.

"It's certainly a compelling situation," said Bond spokesman Rob Ostrander, "but it's not unique, and it's just not viable to draft, introduce and have the Congress vote on a private bill for every individual in the country that wants to be exempted from the law."

The Gonzalezes said their situation stems from a misunderstanding. When they arrived in Los Angeles in 1991, they said attorneys told them they could apply to become permanent residents if they lived in the United States for seven years — regardless if they entered on six-month visitor visas.

The option was repealed by a federal law in 1997.