The case against a two-tour U.S. Army veteran facing deportation will continue for now.
Forty-five-year-old Marlon Parris is from Trinidad and Tobago originally, and he’s been in the U.S. on a green card since the 1990s.
Parris spent five years in prison for a drug offense and he was released in 2016, when he received a no-interest letter from ICE, saying the agency did not plan to deport him, despite his felony charge.
He hasn't been arrested or convicted of any crimes since then. He and his wife have traveled internationally using the letter without incident, and he’s also been able to renew his green card.
But in 2023, a customs agent at the Miami Airport questioned the document while the couple was coming back from vacation abroad. Parris’ green card was taken away and he was referred to an ICE field office. They’ve been in legal proceedings over the issue ever since.
Then, on Jan. 22, ICE agents arrested Parris near his home in Laveen — just outside Phoenix — and he’s been detained at the Central Arizona Florence Correctional Center.
He appeared for the second time in immigration court on Friday morning, when Judge Frank Travieso ruled that he’s eligible for deportation and government evidence against him is admissible. Attorney Douglas Kouffee argues that evidence was improperly filed originally, and then re-filed after a deadline set by the court.
“A fundamental part of our legal process is that the government doesn’t get a second bite of the apple. You don’t get to correct things that you messed up on, deadlines are there for a reason, it’s part of our due process,” he said outside the courthouse Friday.
That was one of a trio of requests submitted by Kouffee and denied by the court. Kouffee says he plans to file an appeal.
“The finding of removability is the first step, and then, at the merits hearing, is when we find out if we have any relief for that removal,” he said.
Parris next faces a merits hearing on Aug. 11, where the judge will hear testimony and witness accounts for the case.
Parris’ wife, Tanisha Hartwell-Parris, says she’s choosing to remain positive, and her family has been preparing for a lot of different scenarios.
“It’s a reset, but we have so many plans in motion, to where we’ve already started looking at homes in other countries if we need to,” she said. “We’re not letting this administration fear monger us, and have us worry, that’s something that I will not give this administration.”
