Senators Demand Explanation After Disabled Veteran Is Forced to Self-Deport
Case raises alarms over DHS treatment of noncitizen service members and veterans
WASHINGTON — Senators Mazie Hirono of Hawaii and Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut, both Democrats, are pressing the Department of Homeland Security for answers after a disabled Purple Heart veteran was forced to self-deport in June, highlighting what they describe as the Trump administration’s callous approach to veterans with immigration complications.\
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Sae Joon Park, who served in the U.S. Army and was wounded in the 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama, was compelled to leave the country on June 23 after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials in Honolulu told him he would be detained unless he departed voluntarily. Park, 61, had lived in the United States since the age of seven and leaves behind two U.S.-citizen children and a mother reportedly suffering from early-stage dementia.
Park’s case underscores long-standing concerns about the vulnerability of noncitizen veterans, particularly those with service-connected mental health conditions. According to the letter sent by the senators to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem on August 2, Park had been allowed to remain in the U.S. for years under a supervised release arrangement despite a decades-old criminal conviction linked to his post-service struggles with undiagnosed post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). His green card had been revoked as a result of that conviction, but ICE had permitted him to check in annually without threat of removal — until this year.
“Your department’s actions towards this veteran say otherwise,” the senators wrote, referring to DHS’ public claims of targeting only high-priority immigration offenders. They accused the department of treating Park as a threat despite his service and long-term residence in the country.
While DHS has not issued a specific comment on Park’s case, the senators noted that when asked, Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin reiterated general enforcement policy language about prioritizing “noncitizens who break the law,” without addressing the veteran’s status or circumstances.
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Immigration advocates have long criticized ICE for what they see as inconsistent policies toward veterans, especially those with combat-related trauma. The senators’ letter includes a series of oversight questions demanding DHS clarify how many veterans have been deported or self-deported under current leadership, and what guidance is provided to officials when dealing with cases involving PTSD, substance use disorder, or military service.
The senators also questioned what mitigating factors, if any, DHS considered before pressuring Park to leave, and what changes — if any — have been made to the agency’s discretionary tools such as deferred action or supervised release in veteran cases.
Park’s deportation adds to a growing list of cases that have triggered bipartisan calls for reform. Past DHS leadership under both Democratic and Republican administrations has acknowledged failures to adequately track and protect noncitizen veterans from removal proceedings.
The Department of Homeland Security has until August 20 to respond to the senators’ inquiries.
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