PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber’s fiancee admitted Thursday that she violated the law when she married an immigrant seeking to retain residency in the United States.
Cylvia Hayes said in a news conference that she believes she was paid around $5,000 for the 1997 marriage. She said she was “associating with the wrong people” while struggling to put herself through college.
“It was wrong then and it is wrong now and I am here today to accept the consequences, some of which will be life-changing,” Hayes said.
Hayes said she was “ashamed and embarrassed,” and did not tell the governor about the marriage until a reporter from the Willamette Week newspaper began asking questions this week. She appeared alone before a podium in a downtown Portland office building, saying she asked Kitzhaber not to join her because she can’t look at him without crying.
When she told Kitzhaber about the marriage, “he was stunned and he was hurt,” Hayes said, pausing to fight tears. “And I will be eternally grateful for the beautiful, loving way he has supported me in this.”