Decorated Soldier Sues for Citizenship
July 21, 2008
United Press International

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - A decorated Soldier who was born in Iraq has filed suit in federal court seeking to speed up government action on his bid to become a U.S. citizen.

Julian Polous, who was born in Mosul, Iraq, fled Saddam Hussein's army and found asylum in the United States, where he got a green card and joined the Army, the Kansas City Star reported.

Polous served an extended tour in Iraq, earning several medals, including a Purple Heart.

Still, the U.S. government says it is not ready to let him become a citizen -- his application has been caught up for more than a year in a backlog of FBI name checks, the newspaper said.

Part of the problem may be that, while his full name is Julian Petrous Polous al Matchy, he has also gone by Polous, Polous al Matchy and Polousalmatchy.

Polous served as a translator for U.S. Army Col. David Sutherland of the 3rd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division.

Polous was "accepted better than any other interpreter by governors, tribal leaders, whomever we needed communication with," Sutherland said.

In addition to his Purple Heart, Polous earned two Army Commendation Medals, a Combat Action Badge and gold combat spurs.

That's BS, plain and simple. Anyone who serves honorably in our military, especially in a war zone, deserves automatic citizenship.

I certainly agree with you.

Yes, especially because I am sure the recruiter promised him that it would happen immediately after he got back from overseas.

It has little to do with his being a soldier and more todo with the name changes that they are looking at. Google "Soldier becomes an American Citizen" and you will see this is a unique case:


United States Central Command - Soldiers become American citizens ... CENTCOM official web site, DJIBOUTI (March 16, 2008) — Seven Soldiers supporting the Combined Joint Task Force-Horn of Africa mission became US citizens ...
http://www.centcom.mil/en/news/soldiers-become-american-citizens-in-africa.html - 39k - Cached - Similar pages

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Matt Sanchez : Soldiers fighting for U.S. become citizens Soldiers fighting for U.S. become citizens. Wnd_logo. Header_exclusive .... I would like to extend a welcome to our new American citizens. Thank-you. ...
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Fort Bragg Soldiers Become U.S. Citizens in Iraq :: WRAL.com Fort Bragg Soldiers Become U.S. Citizens in Iraq. Posted: Apr. 12, 2008 ... Fort Bragg soldiers serving in Iraq became newly minted American citizens in the ...
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Multi-National Force - Iraq - Soldiers become citizens at Anaconda Nov 13, 2006 ... Daily Stories arrow Soldiers become citizens at Anaconda ... LSA ANACONDA — Several service members became American citizens during a ...
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Hutch Report: Foreign US Soldiers Become U.S. Citizens These soldiers will eventually become American citizens unlike outsourcing work to other countries. For the US not to reward public service in the military ...
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I will add that I hope someone gets this situation cleared up ASAP and allows this soldier to become an American citizen as he so richly deserves to be.

Being a soldier and wanting to become a US citizen has it;s own set of standards, and there are times when it is denied or "continued":

Step 12 -- Wait for the CIS Decision. After your interview, your application for U.S. citizenship will be granted, continued, or denied.


Granted -- Sometimes, CIS can tell you if you will be granted citizenship at the end of your interview. Otherwise, you will receive a notice telling you when and where your oath ceremony will be held.

Continued -- -The CIS officer may also continue your case. This means your case is on hold. The most common reasons for continuation are failing the English and civics tests or failing to give CIS the documents they need. If your case is continued, you will either be asked to come to a second interview, usually within 60-90 days of the first interview or to provide additional documents.

Denied -- CIS may also deny your application for naturalization. If CIS denies your application, you will receive a written notice telling you why. There is an administrative review process for applicants who receive denials. If you believe that you were wrongly denied citizenship, you may request a hearing with a CIS officer. Your denial letter will explain how to request a hearing and will include the form you need. The form for filing an appeal is the Request for Hearing Proceedings under Section 336 of the Immigration and Naturalization Act, Form N-336.

http://usmilitary.about.com/od/theorderlyroom/a/citizenship_4.htm

The Army was desperate enough to take him with all his flaws. He was good enough to fight and possibly die for this country.

This trumps that

Good point!