In 2015, Omaha, Nebraska, police officer Kerrie Orozco was killed in the line of duty. Her husband, Hector Orozco, became a single father. And in the midst of grieving and putting his family’s life back together, Hector faced a wait time of five years before he could apply for citizenship.
That isn’t right.
A loved one grieving a family member who made the ultimate sacrifice should not have to worry about how to navigate our immigration system — or, worse, potentially face deportation.
Democrats and Republicans in Washington, D.C., struggle to find common ground these days. There’s partisanship; there’s gridlock; there’s disagreement. But there’s one cause that is bringing people together on both sides of the aisle: standing up for the families of public safety officers who die in the line of duty, because those who make the ultimate sacrifice should know that their loved ones will be OK.
That is why Congress should pass the bipartisan Kerrie Orozco First Responders Family Support Act.
As the sheriff of Dane County, Wisconsin, overseeing more than 550 dedicated men and women, this is personal for me. When we send our officers into harm’s way, I know our community has their back, but it’s about time our country had their back as well.
Specifically, the bill permits a surviving spouse, child, or parent of a U.S. citizen public safety officer, who dies while serving, to apply for U.S. citizenship much faster than the process normally would take. The legislation requires that the surviving spouse, child, or parent meet all the other requirements for naturalization.
In the military, we allow members of Gold Star Families to naturalize after the death of active-duty service members. The Kerrie Orozco bill effectively does the same thing for public safety officials. Indeed, our immigration laws should recognize the sacrifice that families of first responders make. That’s why I signed an open letter urging Congress to take action, along with 80 other leaders in the Law Enforcement Immigration Task Force, such as Sheriffs Leon Lott of Richland County, South Carolina, and Paul Fitzgerald of Story County, Iowa; Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo; and Los Angeles Chief Michel R. Moore.
This legislation isn’t just about doing what’s right; it’s also about keeping us safe.
Today, in cities and towns across the country, trust is lacking between law enforcement and the communities we serve, especially within our immigrant communities. I see this on a daily basis in Wisconsin. Immigrants and their family members are fearful of law enforcement. As a result, predators can more easily prey on immigrant families, and on the families of naturalized citizens. When people are afraid to come forward and report a crime, it makes all of us less safe.
That has to change.
The hardest call a police chief or sheriff ever has to make is to the wife, husband, son, daughter, mother, or father of an officer who has lost his or her life while protecting the community. In those painful moments, the least we can do is reduce the burden that loved ones are experiencing, not add to it with unnecessary threats of looming deportation. We need to demonstrate that our country values valor and extraordinary sacrifice.
Democrats and Republicans in the House and the Senate must come together, do what’s right, and pass the Kerrie Orozco Act.
David Mahoney is the sheriff of Dane County, Wisconsin.
