Armed Forces News

The adopted daughter of a retired Army officer must leave the U.S. and return to South Korea. A federal judge in Kansas upheld the decision of federal immigration authorities that Hyebin Shreiber was not legally adopted until she was 17 years old – a year too late under U.S. immigration law. Her adoptive father, retired Lt. Col. Patrick Schreiber of Lansing, Kan., had brought the girl into the U.S. when she was 15, in 2012. But the adoption process was delayed while he was deployed to Afghanistan, the Kansas City Star reported Sept. 30.
While the Shreibers moved forward under a process that is legal under Kansas state law, they were unaware of the conflict with the federal adoption statute. Patrick Shreiber filed the federal lawsuit when the U.S. Customs and Immigration Service (CIS) determined that the adoption did not meet the letter of the law. Legal representatives for CIS and Immigration and Customs Enforcement contended that their action followed the law’s narrow constraints.
Patrick Schreiber and his wife, Soo Jin, are of Korean descent. The Star reported that the couple met while he was stationed in Korea. They met the child – who is their niece – during the Korea tour and took steps to adopt her because of “difficulties” within her biological family, the Star reported.
The girl now attends the University of Kansas on student visa. She conceivably could obtain a work visa, should a prospective employer decide to sponsor her. If not, the couple said they will move to Korea with their daughter in order to keep their family intact, the Star reported.