NEWS: California Woman May Have Voted Herself Out Of The Country

POLITICS: California Woman May Have Voted Herself Out Of The Country

Remember way back in 2004, when everyone from Hunter S. Thompson to that annoying dude who fucked up “Kashmir” were urging Americans to vote?

Zoila Meyer, a single mother of four living in Adelanto, California, was one of over 122 million Americans who hopped on the representative democracy bandwagon that year. In fact, she took it a step further. Not only did she register to vote, she decided to run for Adelanto’s City Council, filing her candidacy papers only 10 days before the deadline.

She never expected to actually win a seat on the City Council, so in true American underdog tradition, Zolia wound up winning the election.

Her electoral victory must have surprised someone else as well, since shortly thereafter one of her family members went to the authorities and got to snitchin’.

Zolia, who was originally born in Cuba and had been living in the United States since the age of one, might not actually be a US citizen. She just assumed she was a citizen, as many people who have been living in the United States since before they could talk might tend to do. This meant that when she cast her vote in the 2004 election, she was actually committing a felony.

Facing criminal charges, Zolia resigned from the Adelanto City Council only 10 weeks after taking office. She then applied to become a naturalized citizen, and struck a deal with the government. In 2006, Zolia pled guilty to the misdemeanor charge of “fraudulent voting,” paid a fine, and got probation. The fine citizens of Adelanto were thus spared having such a flagrant lawbreaker in their city government. Well, until the mayor and his wife were busted for stealing $20 grand from Little League fundraisers. Classy!

Just when you thought that was the happy ending, earlier this year the INS decided that Zolia’s guilty plea was enough reason to deport her. So now after being arrested (again), Zolia faces a court hearing in July to see if the horrible crime of voting will get her kicked out into Canada. That is, if she’s not actually an American citizen. Apparently nobody really knows if she is one or not, due to the complexity of immigration laws. At least the INS got to handcuff her and make her post bail.

I feel safer already.

Since she's Cuban, doesn't she come under the 'wet foot, dry foot' policy? Or did she come to America before that was put in place, and it isn't retro-active?

I'm sorry but first it was just plain ignorant on her part to just "assume" she was a citizen, knowing she was born in Cuba.

Second, Adelanto is the home of a California State Prison, there is nothing else there, this is so typical of this area it's not even funny, actually I'm surprised that there was no mention of a meth lab in the article.

now that is the most stupid thing ever. They don't even know if she's a citizen or not ? How can they not know ? It's their job to know ! Well, whatever... we'll be glad to take her and make of her a proud canadian

Oh well, that's the way she goes in the land of freedom 'n liberty... small time criminals, pay the penalty, big league crooks, go scot free... no need to sweat if you're a war criminal residing in the White House, s'all good...

If the INS can't figure out whether you're a Citizen or not, you're a Citizen. I think we can all agree that that should be a law.

Even if it were retroactive, and she came under it, that would only make her a legal resident, not a citizen. And only a citizen can legally vote.

"Ignorant" may be a tad unfair.

Immigration laws are incredibly complicated, and I won't even go into the incredibly fucked up beaurocracy of the INS . you can grow up in the US, have a social security card, work, and have a family for years and years and have no indication that your status is in question. who knows what what her family told her, and who's mistake (if one exists)it was.

even more kudos to her if she lives in an unfortunate area and was attempting to do something for her community.

Heh. Agreed.

If she's not legal, she's not legal.

She was born in Cuba and unless she took the citizenship test, oath, etc, she's not a citizen.

It may suck, but that's how it is.

As the article says, it isn't as clear as that in this case.

That is awful. I agree with Liberty, if she has been a living as productive member of American society (which is a hell of a lot more than can be said for some of the entitled kids coming out of this country these days) for more years than I have been alive I would go with yeah, she's a citizen.

Oh, of course, your logica makes sense; If things are that way, it doesn't matter how much they suck, they should stay that way.

This is what, in elementary philosophy, we call a "logical fallacy"

I personally think the immigration issue is severely out of whack - and I'm not going to wax philisophical about how we are "all immigrants." But for a child to be raised in this country - and apparently become a productive member of society - enough to mobilize and participate in local politics - then her removal and possible deportation speaks strongly about our mission as a country - and the apparent smoke we've been blowing up the asses of hopefuls in other countries to "get a slice of the American Dream."


Try this on for size.

Infants that flee mexico and other countries to come to NYC - so their parents can work their asses off providing for their family here AND their relatives back home - grow up in the city public schools - and when it comes time to graduate and go to college - cannot get a college loan - effectively squashing their dreams of higher education unless they gain citizenship - my question is - at what agei s someone considered young enough to just BE a US citizen?

here's an article about immigrant kids getting sandbagged by the system

These kids are as american as I am. Let them go to college and get a fucking education.

Imagine a narrow and illinformed point of view comming from the land that brought us "W". Hmph, go figure.

I have a friend who's an INS agent somewhere out thataways.* I'd ask him about it, but he'd probably not be inclined to tell me anything I could repeat here. And me not quite living up to my user name, I wouldn't try to trick him into giving me whatever skinny he might have on her.

* The kind of friend you disagree with on about 95% of what's going on in the world, so you try to make the most out of the 5% and are always amazed at how well you get alone when you actually meet up. Oil and water works out OK in certain salad dressings...

Wait, isn't there an international airport and an indian casino there too?

hey ogichida -

W was born in Connecticut - went to prep school in Connecticut and then attended University in Boston. He likes the image of being from Texas more than Texas likes to claim where his narrow points of view come from.

While I don't agree with thrash242's comments - it ain't because he is from Texas that W's so simple.

I beg your pardon... but there is a minor league baseball team in Adelanto... The prison and former air force base (which are across the street from eachother) are technically in Victorville. As someone who lives in a neighboring city, I resent your belittlement of that mediocre dirt town...

It sucks that the kids are getting denied college loans, but the fact remains that they cames here illegaly. Whether it was by their doing or (in all of these cases) their parent's doing, it was still illegal to sneak across the border, outstay their visa, do whatever they did to get here without documentation. It's unfortunate for the kids that their parents didn't respect them enough to ensure that they would have a secure future. I don't care if they've been contributing to our society for 100 years - it's forfeit to them if they have been contributing illegaly. Kinda like robbing a bank to give the money to cancer research...it's still illegal.

i don't know if this has been said or not...but, shouldn't her status in the nation been caught when she registered to vote?

YOu're going to have to clairfy how an immigrant living below the poverty level in our country is "robbing a bank?"

Most Mexicans in NYC make little to no money - so whatever portion of their income you could tax wouldn't amount to much. But the earning potential of their college-educated children that should simply be granted citizenship if they attend all 12 years of formal education - is by far more. Most of these kids will want to do great things - and earn substantial amounts of money the same way their parents tried by coming here illegally.

What I'm proposing isn't rocket science here - it's that as a nation we should grant full citizenship to every child that completes 12 years (or at least 10 years - to cover the late bloomers and the geniuses) full citizenship - but they lose their citizenship in their native countries - it's a trade off. Then you give them all the money they need to complete college (which since most of these kids will be coming out of the poorest of households will fall mostly on subsidized loans and privately funded grants from the sponsoring college. Then, armed with an education and a REAL sense of work ethic - these supposed illegals enter our workforce legitimately and make collectively - exponentially more money for the city, state, and national governments through income taxes - more than backfilling the apparent "drain" their parents had.

I'm sure there would be special cases along the way - but I see no disadvantage to granting full citizenship to kids that in my opinion - are US citizens already.

Apparently not...

....and this gives me a lot of interesting ideas...