I’m looking for some advice for a friend from all of the amazing minds at the SD. Especially what laws apply to her (so lawyer dopers and anyone who knows anything about US immigration, please jump in).
She is a US citizen but has been living in Antigua for most of her life. She got married to an Antiguan guy and had a child here, which makes the child Antiguan too. Her husband is verbally and physically abusive and cheats on her and she has left him numerous times, but because the island is so small and she has a lot of pressure on her from both families to try and work things out, she has kept going back to him.
About 3 weeks ago, her father went to the US to have surgery and she went up with him and with the child. She got written permission from her husband to bring the child to the States. What she didn’t tell her husband was that she is not planning on coming back. She feels that it is better for all of them if she raises the child in the States. She is currently on the East Coast somewhere but will be moving to Florida permanently in about a week. She has since told her husband that she is not coming back (he wasn’t very happy) and now there is a malicious woman spreading rumours about her that she cheated on her husband and he is apparently looking to file kidnapping charges on her. I have advised her to go see a lawyer pronto to see what her options are but she said she has to wait til she gets to Florida because laws are different in every state.
Can anyone help me to give her an idea of what her options are in this situation? Thanks!