Russian family awaits deportation ruling

Monday, July 11, 2005 | 9:31 a.m.

A Las Vegas family of figure skaters expects to find out next month whether they will be forcibly deported to their native Russia or allowed to remain in the United States for an additional period of time.

Vladimir Khatin, Anna Petrachenkova and their 11-year-old son, Timofey, have been fighting to remain in America for nearly five years. The family first came to the United States as part of a "Moscow Stars on Ice" touring company and sought political asylum when their visas expired in the winter of 2000.

Since then their case has made its way through the court system and is now in the hands of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials. Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev. helped the family win a 90-day stay of their original deportation date in March. Another temporary stay was granted last month in part because Petrachenkova and Khatin's Russian passports, a necessary document for deportation, had not yet arrived from the Russian Embassy in San Francisco.

The passports have still not arrived and there is no way of determining when the documents will be completed.