Iraq veteran from Portland released by immigration officials

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – A Portland veteran who served in Iraq has been released after being detained by federal immigration authorities and held at a detention center in Tacoma, Washington.

KOIN-TV reports that 41-year-old Chong Hwan Kim was released Thursday after the Circuit Court of Multnomah County dismissed a first-degree arson conviction.

Northwest Immigrant Rights Project attorney Tim Warden-Hertz says charges were reduced to misdemeanors because Kim wasn’t informed of the consequences of pleading guilty.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement says the Board of Immigration Appeals will determine the outcome of Kim’s deportation case.

Kim says he suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and that he made poor decisions after getting back from Iraq, including substance abuse.

Kim arrived in the United States at age 5 from South Korea with his family.

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Information from: KOIN-TV, http://www.koin.com/