9 Investigates

9 Investigates: Marion County woman waits more than a year for immigration paperwork

MARION COUNTY, Fla. — Marion County resident Donna Rioux is living the American dream.

“I am a retired teacher from Columbus, Ohio and I moved here to be able to conduct my business,” she said.

But after moving here at the beginning of 2017, her citizenship came into question for the first time in decades, at the the Department of Motor Vehicles.

“Emotionally, it's wearing me out; going back and forth to prove that what I'm a citizen. I've been a citizen,” said Rioux.

Rioux was born in Canada to a Canadian father and an American mother.

She became a citizen and has been living in the U.S. since she was a teenager, but her paperwork to prove it got lost along the way.

“I applied for a replacement document and it has now been 15 months of going back and forth with the immigration department,” she said.

Rioux received two conflicting letters from U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.

One was sent to her in June saying that her request for a copy of the document was being processed.

But a second  letter, sent in August, claims the sensitive documents were sent through the mail in March.

“They want me to start the entire process again, give them another $500 for a paper I never received, and start the process all over again,” she said.

Citizenship records are sent by certified mail with a tracking number, and they require a signature. Rioux said she never received certified mail.

No one from USCIS could explain why the agency's own correspondence contained conflicting information.

“I'm on a teacher's pension so I don't have an extra $500 to pay for something I've never even received,” Rioux said.

Due to privacy restrictions, USCIS could not speak about the case, but said that the security, integrity and efficiency of document delivery is a priority for the agency and the case is being investigated.