Marrying a U.S citizen who's in prison - which visa ?

[Liya S. 18]

14 hours ago, PaulaCJohnny said:

Sounds like you are really young. Am my right?
 

One super important thing that you need to start to research and understand is the limitations of a ex fellow person in the US.

 

Maybe you are not seeing this right now but a relationship where you prefer towards ridding it from others isn’t a good sign.

 

Please be really careful because not just this relationship sounds very new but also the consequences after this can be harder than you think.

 

How long have he been incarcerated? What as the charges? How old are you both?

 

This is not judging you! I’m just trying to make sure you understand how life can be without pink glasses.

 

Good luck.

I don't know how life is for a felon in the US but I'll definitely look into that. He's 23 and i'm 22 ; he's been incarcerated since 2018 and he committed 2nd degree manslaughter.
I'm going to take things slow, visit him a few times and see how it goes as i'm not in a rush.

[PaulaCJohnny 712]

47 minutes ago, Liya S. said:

I don't know how life is for a felon in the US but I'll definitely look into that. He's 23 and i'm 22 ; he's been incarcerated since 2018 and he committed 2nd degree manslaughter.
I'm going to take things slow, visit him a few times and see how it goes as i'm not in a rush.

Yes, definitely not a simple crime. Young people can commit dumb mistakes but this kind of crime is really bad and I bet you that was not his only crime in life.

 

So, He has been incarcerated for 6 years and in 6 months speaking with you he wants to marry. If this is not enough red flags for you I don’t know what can be. 
 

He can definitely be an amazing person in your eyes but he is living isolated of the world and everything right now will sounds magical! Be really reaaally careful, financially, financially and emotionally. Get a lawyer and get a copy of all his records. This is not a DUI thing.  Be extremely cautious.

[Bob in Boston 624]

13 hours ago, mniceguy16 said:

we're both in our early twenties (if that matters) & he's in for manslaughter and robbery. Thank you all! 

With that on his record the chance of him landing a good job is slim. Good jobs require background checks and Moral character checks. What will he do for work? Can you be the bread winner? He may get frustrated with the way things are going and return to a life of crime. Spending 6 or 7 years in jail changes a man and not for the better. Think about your future. I have 3 daughters and spent 33.5 years in law enforcement. He has a lot on his plate just to get back to normal. Getting married should be last on his list. Do yourself and the people who love you a favor. Do not pursue this man. I think you'll regret it.

Edited March 7 by Bob in Boston

[millefleur 5,037]

1 hour ago, PaulaCJohnny said:

Get a lawyer and get a copy of all his records.

Seconding this. A lawyer should be able to help you get all his records. There are also some "people search" services that can access court records online but they cost money and I don't know how thorough they are. Keep in mind US lawyers are not cheap, bills can run into the thousands of dollars very, very easily. 

 

1 hour ago, PaulaCJohnny said:

So, He has been incarcerated for 6 years and in 6 months speaking with you he wants to marry. If this is not enough red flags for you I don’t know what can be. 

Definitely many red flags here. It's good OP came here first and has already gotten a lot of good advice. Proceed with caution indeed.

[JeanneAdil 6,203]

4 hours ago, Liya S. said:

I don't know how life is for a felon in the US but I'll definitely look into that. He's 23 and i'm 22 ; he's been incarcerated since 2018 and he committed 2nd degree manslaughter.
I'm going to take things slow, visit him a few times and see how it goes as i'm not in a rush.

Brother and sister both in law enforcement and prison life is rough

You can do a search 

http://kool.corrections.ky.gov/ 

that's the Kentucky offender lookup

 

You can also search court records to see ALL his arrests and convictions

it may help to know his prison ID or SS #.

 

Visits in Kentucky prison are scheduled if u r on visitor list (HInt:  u should be able to view who else is on that list /I would check for other females)

visits are for 1 hour with possible 1 hour extension 

read the site I sent as it says it all 

[JeanneAdil 6,203]

5 hours ago, Liya S. said:

I don't know how life is for a felon in the US but I'll definitely look into that. He's 23 and i'm 22 ; he's been incarcerated since 2018 and he committed 2nd degree manslaughter.
I'm going to take things slow, visit him a few times and see how it goes as i'm not in a rush.

he's 23 now and would have been 18+/-  when he went in

lack of any former education or job skills/ factory work may be possible if he can pass drug tests   just be careful 

BTW my sister says many prisons make the inmate prove they have a job outside in order to get parole/  she works North Carolina as parole officer

 

in prison most inmates learn the wrong things/  like how to better at crime / how to do ID theft is  a popular subject in many US jails 

 

Sorry as i am not judging him as he was young and the worst happened /just know what and why 

and talk to his family /see if he still has their support as he will need it 

[Ellie_7 98]

@Liya S. I commend you for coming to Visa Journey to ask about this. I am glad to see that you are stating you are not in a rush. 

 

Many wise and experienced members have already brought up excellent advice and tips.

 

 I'm also wondering how easily he would be able to sponsor someone.

If a US citizen's income is not enough to meet requirements, there is the avenue of joint sponsor. But we have seen parents posting on VisaJourney that they aren't comfortable being a joint sponsor for their son or daughter's spouse in cases and ended up refusing to do so... And these were situations where neither the son/daughter nor the spouse had committed any type of crime. It was just that the parents didn't feel comfortable signing up for the responsibility of sponsoring an immigrant. So yeah, I wonder if this young man has looked into the sponsorship aspect of what he was suggesting.

[JeanneAdil 6,203]

i forgot 1 important thing

Don't send him money/ his needs are taken care of

[SalishSea 16,776]

15 hours ago, JeanneAdil said:

to marry and do the spouse i gave the site for Kentucky prison rules 

Kentucky does not allow conjugal visits so to file CR 1 she would need to wait till he is out

 

Also the inmate must  list her for the  approved visitor list 

 

Before visiting your inmate check all the rules you need to follow. You can find an inmate at Kentucky State Penitentiary , using the Pigeonly Inmate Search if you need help before visitng. After the visitor has been approved by the correctional facility they need to check with their inmate on what days they are allowed to visit.

 

Visitors must register in the Inmate Visitation system prior to scheduling an appointment with the inmate. 

 

Does Ky have conjugal visits?

 

There are only four U.S. states that currently allow conjugal visits, often called "extended" or "family" visits: California, Connecticut, New York, and Washington.Jun 21, 2022

 

 

They would not need an officially sanctioned “conjugal” visit.   Marriage “consummation”  for USCIS purposes is being in one another’s presence in person.  So, a situation where the prison permits supervised visits with guards present, etc would work for the purpose of the petition.

[Liya S. 18]

6 hours ago, JeanneAdil said:

he's 23 now and would have been 18+/-  when he went in

lack of any former education or job skills/ factory work may be possible if he can pass drug tests   just be careful 

BTW my sister says many prisons make the inmate prove they have a job outside in order to get parole/  she works North Carolina as parole officer

 

in prison most inmates learn the wrong things/  like how to better at crime / how to do ID theft is  a popular subject in many US jails 

 

Sorry as i am not judging him as he was young and the worst happened /just know what and why 

and talk to his family /see if he still has their support as he will need it 

What do you mean by "lack of any former education or job skills/ factory work may be possible if he can pass drug tests"? 
 

He was 16 when he went in he's turning 23 soon. And i sent him money once ($50) and then told him i wouldn't send anything anymore. Thank you for your reply!

[Liya S. 18]

6 hours ago, Ellie_7 said:

@Liya S. I commend you for coming to Visa Journey to ask about this. I am glad to see that you are stating you are not in a rush. 

 

Many wise and experienced members have already brought up excellent advice and tips.

 

 I'm also wondering how easily he would be able to sponsor someone.

If a US citizen's income is not enough to meet requirements, there is the avenue of joint sponsor. But we have seen parents posting on VisaJourney that they aren't comfortable being a joint sponsor for their son or daughter's spouse in cases and ended up refusing to do so... And these were situations where neither the son/daughter nor the spouse had committed any type of crime. It was just that the parents didn't feel comfortable signing up for the responsibility of sponsoring an immigrant. So yeah, I wonder if this young man has looked into the sponsorship aspect of what he was suggesting.

Thank you i actually didn't know i was going to get so many advice and a lot of them are very helpful! I know what i have to do know.
 

And he didn't know that he would need someone else to sponsor me if we decided to go through all that. He knows nothing about that kind of stuff. Idk why he even he brought up the idea of marriage that soon lol. Yesterday i told him it would be better to consider getting married after spending time together in the outside world so that we can get to know each other better, meet each other's families and see if we're compatible and he agreed lol.

[Boiler 43,451]

5 minutes ago, Liya S. said:

What do you mean by "lack of any former education or job skills/ factory work may be possible if he can pass drug tests"? 
 

He was 16 when he went in he's turning 23 soon. And i sent him money once ($50) and then told him i wouldn't send anything anymore. Thank you for your reply!

 

Probably never finished High School which is the very basic level, could have got a GED in Prison. Many basic jobs require a High School Diploma.

 

The job I have required a drugs test, when I looked into it further as this was the first time I had every had to do one it seems many around where I am would fail.

[Dashinka 23,251]

16 hours ago, Liya S. said:

I don't know how life is for a felon in the US but I'll definitely look into that. He's 23 and i'm 22 ; he's been incarcerated since 2018 and he committed 2nd degree manslaughter.
I'm going to take things slow, visit him a few times and see how it goes as i'm not in a rush.

Did he elaborate to you (you do not need to elaborate here) the underlying crime?  Second degree manslaughter can be a lot of things like a DWI causing a death, selling drugs causing a death etc.  Again, no need to elaborate here, I just mentioned it as it will be a sign of his honesty.

 

Good Luck!

[Bethie 57]

17 hours ago, Liya S. said:

I'm not sure how i can get the court records but i'll take your advice and do some research. And yes after reading other posts i think i'm going to take things slow because after all marriage didn't even cross my mind. 

Good girl, I wish you only the best!! 

[SalishSea 16,776]

9 hours ago, Liya S. said:

What do you mean by "lack of any former education or job skills/ factory work may be possible if he can pass drug tests"? 
 

He was 16 when he went in he's turning 23 soon. And i sent him money once ($50) and then told him i wouldn't send anything anymore. Thank you for your reply!

I think that person meant "formal" education.  In other words, he has been in prison during the years when a person would normally pursue diplomas, degrees, trade/vocational certifications etc.  Did he graduate from high school?

9 hours ago, Liya S. said:

Thank you i actually didn't know i was going to get so many advice and a lot of them are very helpful! I know what i have to do know.
 

And he didn't know that he would need someone else to sponsor me if we decided to go through all that. He knows nothing about that kind of stuff. Idk why he even he brought up the idea of marriage that soon lol. Yesterday i told him it would be better to consider getting married after spending time together in the outside world so that we can get to know each other better, meet each other's families and see if we're compatible and he agreed lol.

MUCH better plan.