Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) apprehensions and deportations have set communities on edge. In New York and Texas, the New York Times and The Texas Tribune have recently reported about long lines at the Bureau of Vital Statistics in New York City and the Travis County passport office. In one line, a family was waiting to get passports for US citizen children in the worst case situation that the parents are deported.
In Colorado, the Colorado sheriff’s association recently clarified that recent immigration orders aren’t likely to affect enforcement. We are writing about the issue, however, because deportations have the potential to tear apart Colorado families. Guardianships may be one option for documented relatives to care for US children left behind after a deportation.
Guardianship and conservatorship proceedings
What is difficult to believe is that at the Mexican consulate in Austin they are offering custody sessions to help undocumented parents understand how guardianship works.
With increasing risks of deportation, it is wise to plan for what would happen to minor children in a worst case scenario. A February video from a Denver courthouse confirms that ICE enforcement agents seem to be increasing their efforts locally. An attorney confronts agents who confirm that they are indeed waiting to take someone into custody.
A guardian in Colorado is responsible for a protected person’s well being – this could be a minor child. A conservator handles an estate or financial affairs. For any US citizen children it is important to have a guardian who can make important medical or schooling decisions.
Guardian decisions are often linked with estate planning, but in the case that a family may be separated by international borders a guardianship could be an important tool to protect loved ones that stay in Colorado. Speak with a attorney for more specific counsel based on your unique situation.