A mother and her 28-year-old daughter were recently arrested after falsifying documents so the daughter could attend high school and learn English.
Faked Identification
A recent incident in St. Charles Parish has gone viral raising concerns about safety and education. Here’s the full story.
A 28-year-old woman, Martha Jessenia Gutierrez-Serrano, and her mother, Marta Elizeth Serrano-Alvarado, were arrested for allegedly using fake documents to enroll Martha as a student at Hahnville High School.
Sheriff Greg Champagne held a press conference to address the concerns of parents and clarify the situation. He emphasized that Martha did not engage in any criminal or inappropriate behavior, nor did she pose a threat to other students.
Dreamed of an Education
The intention behind the fake documents was to provide Martha with quality education and improve her English skills.
Champagne revealed that Martha’s mother, Marta Elizeth Serrano-Alvarado, created a fake passport and birth certificate from Honduras.
Serrano-Alvarado was in the country on an expired visa, while her daughter had documentation of being processed by the federal government, entering the U.S. in late 2021.
However, the current immigration status of the individuals involved remains unclear.
A Wake-Up Call
Dr. Ken Oertling, the superintendent of St. Charles Parish Public Schools, expressed his hope that this incident would serve as a wake-up call for school systems in Louisiana and across the country.
Oertling plans to conduct an audit of enrollment records for current students to identify any potential irregularities and strengthen the enrollment process to prevent similar incidents in the future.
Both Oertling and Sheriff Champagne declined to provide details about her participation in clubs, athletics, or extracurricular activities in the school.
Commended Rather Than Penalized
Legal analyst Joe Raspanti believes that the charges against Martha are unlikely to hold up. Raspanti argues that her actions demonstrate a strong desire to learn English and pursue an education, and he believes she should be commended rather than penalized.
This viewpoint raises questions about the boundaries of the law and the importance of fostering a supportive environment for individuals seeking education.
No Danger to Anyone or Ignorance of the Law?
Several social media users shared their thoughts about the situation.
One YouTube comment read, “This woman and her mother are certainly not a danger to anyone; I do hope the charges will be dismissed.”
Another user wrote, “While she was wrong at least she did it for the right reasons and was not inappropriate with the children. That being said she still needs to do minimum community service because she did break the law. Ignorance of the law is no excuse.”
The post She Faked Her Visa to Access Free Education in US – No Harm Done or Serious Breach of the Law? first appeared on Wealthy Living
Featured Image Credit: Shutterstock / Roman Samborskyi. The people shown in the images are for illustrative purposes only, not the actual people featured in the story.
Source: Reddit