A 37-year-old Prince George man is scrambling after being told he may soon be deported to England by as early as Christmas Eve because of his criminal record, even though he's lived in Canada ever since he was one month old.
Brett Reece Alderman readily admits to an extensive criminal record but maintains he's turned his life around since he met his fiance seven months ago and noted that if he is removed he'll leave behind four children and another on the way.
He also contends the offences he's committed are relatively minor and not violent. His record shows convictions for break and enter, theft $5,000 or under, and mischief $5,000 or under.
Alderman is facing charges of assault and assault causing bodily harm but says he's confident he'll be acquitted of the charges.
The trouble dates back to April 2009 when he was found by the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) to be inadmissible to Canada because he does not have Canadian citizenship and was convicted of a crime for which he was sentenced to at least six months imprisonment or for which the maximum penalty is at least 10 years in jail.
Alderman was sentenced to an 18-month conditional sentence, effectively house arrest, for theft $5,000 or under, but a conditional sentence is considered a term of imprisonment.
The board member who made the decision noted Alderman was a "full month old" when he became a permanent resident in Canada but had not yet been issued a certificate of citizenship.
"I was completely shocked, I don't know what to say to these people," Alderman said. "I've been in Canada all my life, ever since I've been a baby."
Alderman was also advised that he could appeal his decision to the Immigration Appeal Division (IAD), which he did the next day.
But then he appears to have painted himself into a corner.
IRB spokeswoman Melissa Anderson said he sent a change of address in May 2009 and then in December 2009, when he moved to Terrace, "but nothing after that" and his lawyer withdrew from representing him in early February 2010.
"All communications to Mr Alderman from the Immigration Appeal Division (IAD) of the IRB in 2010 were returned to us with marked 'moved' or 'unknown.'" Anderson said.
Over that time, a hearing was rescheduled three times before it was considered abandoned in November 2010, Anderson said.
Had he appeared, either in person or by video or telephone, Alderman would have had an opportunity to appeal the decision.
Phil Rankin, a Vancouver lawyer who has handled several similar types of cases over his career, said that unless Alderman can show the IAD did not try hard enough to notify him of the hearings, his chances of getting the case reopened are slim.
"They're very unforgiving in immigration," Rankin said.
Alderman said he's never set foot in England but was told by the Canadian Border Service Agency (CBSA) he must turn himself in for deportation at the end of his most recent conditional sentence, received in Terrace on a charge of break and enter, which ends on Dec. 24.
A CBSA representative declined to comment on Alderman's case because of federal privacy legislation but did say its mandate is to removed an individual as quickly as possible.
Alderman said he does not hold a United Kingdom passport, is now seeking legal advice and financial help in the hopes of getting a reprieve.
Why did Alderman never get his Canadian citizenship?
"I really don't know," he said. "I asked my mother that same question...we were classified under landed immigrant status, I have a SIN [Social Insurance Number] card, I pay taxes, I work.
