Will he go to prison for bigamy?

[Lynnlynn]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? California

 

[Lynnlynn]

I married a man in 2009 and we have 2 kids together. In recent days i have been contacted by a lady from the philippines on facebook who informed me she is his legal wife. I thought it was a scam and told her she is crazy and that i will report her for this stunt. She then sends me a copy of the marriage certificate and i became scared and shocked because i recognized the signature to be the signature of the man i had married. I then go to question the man i married and he tells me he doesnt know who this lady is and tells me it is a scam and i tell him i dont think so because it is your signature. He then calls his mom and she reminds him of the time in 2000 when he was vacationing there that she had him sign papers at the police station in the philippines. Apparently his mom was arranging a marriage for him and he was young(20) and careless and didnt realize what was happening and what the consequences woukd be. He freaks out and says that he did not realize that was a marriage because there was no one there marrying them and there was no wedding ceremony performed or a party or reception. After his vacation in the philippines he came back to the U.S. And lived his life without any contact to or from this lady he so called married. He had forgotten about this entire ordeal and we married in 2009. Now in 2016 the lady had made contact and wants an anullment because she is trying to marry in the Philippines. I need to file for an anullment for the invalid marriage I had to him here in the U.S. to protect myself while they work out their drama for anullment in the philippines. I understand that after they get their marriage anulled in he philippines then I can legally remarry this man. I am alittle concerned and here is why....will he go to prison and face bigamy charges if I file the anullment? He has been a great husband and father and he has a good job. I have never suspected or caught him to seceretly communicating with anyone. I do not want him to go to prison and be charged for a mistake that he didnt plan or intend in making. Please help ease my anxiety. Any answers will be appreciated. Thank you.

 

[eerelations]

What did he think he was signing at the police station? (He must have thought something, even naive 20-year-olds don't go around signing documents at police stations without having at least a vague idea - no matter how erroneous - of what those documents are about.) And obviously the name of the woman he was accidentally marrying must have been all over those documents - why did he think that was?

And why was this document-signing ceremony such an "ordeal" (your word)? If at the time your husband thought it was just some nothing thing, why is it now an ordeal?

I'm not saying I don't believe your husband's story, but these are questions the Philippine officials are going to ask your husband. And they are going to want good, solid, evidence-based and believable answers from your husband before they make any decisions regarding whether or not to grant him an annulment and/or put him in jail. (And really, I think you might want to know these answers yourself before he goes there. Said answers might affect your decision about whether or not to re-marry him.)

And regarding the jail thing? I don't know about the US but in the Philippines it's a good possibility, especially if the Philippine authorities find out your husband married again without first divorcing his Filipina wife. Marriage contracts are taken very very seriously in the Philippines - for example, someone who commits adultery, even just once, can be imprisoned as a criminal for up to 20 years. So given this fact, I can just imagine what they might do to someone who abandons his Filipina wife to go off to America to marry someone else (which is how the Philippine authorities will see it).

(And yes I know, you're gonna say it's the wife who wants the annulment so it should be all on her, but the authorities there are gonna see annulment and criminal breach of marriage contract as two separate issues - they may well grant the annulment and send your husband to prison.)

Your husband needs to consult with an attorney well-versed in Philippine marriage law. If he actually goes to the Philippines (which is what he'll have to do to have any hope of getting an annulment), he will need to retain the services of a lawyer with a license to practice in the Philippines. And meanwhile, you need to try and get answers to the questions I noted above in my first and second paragraphs.

 

[eerelations]

Another question - what was your husband's status in the US at the time you and he started getting close and thinking about marriage? Green card? Or?

This is another question the Philippine authorities will ask, for sure.

 

[Lynnlynn]

This man is one of those people that can fall into a bunch of scams because he is guilble and often times dont read the fine print. The type that a sales person would love because they can sell him anything. So I know this is his own fault but i am the victim here in all this bs and need to understand everything because i have 2 kids and this is something big. This woman admits too that they have not been in communication and that the marriage was a mistake. She has told me she wants nothing and only a signature and has apologized for all of this. She said all she wants is an anullment so that she can move on with her life and start a family. An attorney has already been hited over there to address this problem. I am only asking about what will happen in the U.S. when i anull the marriage. Is he going to prison.

 

[Lynnlynn]

Also he is a U.S citizen

 

[Lynnlynn]

Thank you eerelations for your response

 

[eerelations]

In order for your husband and his first wife to get an annulment, your husband will probably have to go to the Philippines and attend some kind of court. A signature from the US probably won't be enough. He needs to have legal advice in the US (to help him decide whether it's safe to go to the Philippines) and legal representation in the Philippines (should he decide to brave it out and try to get an annulment without going to prison).

It's unlikely he will be jailed in the US because you annuled the marriage - depends what reason you give for wanting the annulment. But if he has to go to the Philippines to enact his annulment, that's a whole 'nother story.

Really, he has to fix his problem before you can fix your problem. You shouldn't even be considering an annulment until he fixes the Philippine problem. Really.

The answers to the questions I asked are important, and "I'm gullible" just won't cut it. He needs way better answers than that in order to stay out of prison.

I understand you are the victim in this but before your issues can be addressed, your husband needs to address his issues first. Again, just because his first wife admits this was all a mistake is no reason to believe that the Philippine authorities won't prosecute him. They can (and probably will) view her request for an annulment, and his breaking the marriage contract as two separate and distinct issues.

Finally, he may be a US citizen now, but what was he back before you got married (i.e., just before 2009, when you and he were contemplating marriage)?

 

[Lynnlynn]

He was an resident alien before we married and applied for citizenship after we were married but not on the basis of marrying me but on the basis that he was a resident alien in california for many years

 

[eerelations]

OK that's fine then, but all the other stuff I said is still the most important stuff. Just trying to get one thing (of many things) out of the way.

I hope the attorney you have is well-versed in Philippine marriage laws...because this is what you need to address first, not how to get an annulment in the US. You need to show this well-versed-in-Philippine-marriage-laws-attorney the document that your husband's other wife wants him to sign. Because it may be bogus, because it may not be adequate, because it may have some other elements that your husband (being gullible) and you (being not a Fillipina) may not understand.

Again, and I cannot stress this enough, this is a Philippines issue for now. It won't be an American issue until the Philipines stuff is resolved. Period.

 

[Lynnlynn]

Thank you eerelations. Your knowledge and advice is very helpful.

 

[CourtClerk]

You can't file for annulment when you have children. You'll need to file for divorce. Oh, and he won't go to jail. Unless you file a police report, the authorities won't even know.

 

[eerelations]

You can't file for annulment when you have children. You'll need to file for divorce.

And that's why I've been telling OP that her hubby needs to resolve his issues in the Philippines first, then he won't have to go through all this divorce stuff (divorce! division of assets! alimony! child custody! child support!) in the US.

 

[CourtClerk]

And that's why I've been telling OP that her hubby needs to resolve his issues in the Philippines first, then he won't have to go through all this divorce stuff (divorce! division of assets! alimony! child custody! child support!) in the US.

Hell, if he just deals with the Philippine issues, they can go on about and have a happy life.

 

[Lynnlynn]

Thank you Courtclerk