The acting Secretary of the Navy ordered the Marine Corps to help a military spouse get her and her family back to the United States, after she took to social media to express concern that she and her kids might be stuck in Germany as she and her husband divorce.
The military spouse, identified by Task & Purpose’s sister publication We Are the Mighty as Jamie Lenio, said that she was worried she would be stuck in Germany if her divorce and custody proceedings happen while still in Germany. She identified her husband as an active-duty Marine who wishes to remain in Germany as a contractor. She said her marriage fell apart due to her spouse having an affair with a superior.
On Thursday, Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao responded to the woman on social media, saying that “you and your family will be home soon.”
In her video, Lenio said that lawyers advised her that custody of her kids could be in part decided on long-term residency. In practice, German courts could decide the children should remain in Germany under a joint-custody agreement between Lenio and her spouse, a prospect that left her “terrified.”
“I never imagined getting divorced could determine whether I’m allowed to go home to the United States with my children,” she said in her social media post.
“Jamie, we hear you loud and clear. I have directed the Marine Corps to issue orders for your return,” Cao commented on her Instagram post on Aug. 27.
In a subsequent post to social media on Aug. 28, Cao alluded to the matter, saying that it is “disturbing that some military members think they can leverage foreign laws by moving their families overseas, only to divorce their spouses and abandon them with no means to return to the U.S.,” although he did not explicitly cite Lenio’s case.
It’s not clear if the acting secretary is taking any additional actions on this matter or related cases. Capt. Tamara Lawrence, Cao’s spokesperson, said in a statement to Task & Purpose that the specifics of the family’s situation is between the family members and the Marine Corps. Lawrence said that the acting secretary “has been very clear on this matter: His top priority is our Sailors, Marines, and their families. We have Navy and Marine Corps personnel stationed all over the world performing various missions, and it is incumbent upon them to ensure they are mindful of their conduct at all times given the potential mission impacts when they do not adhere to the standard expected of them.”
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