Josephine died when Garman was 12, and he says he was sent to live in a group home until he was 16. He didn't get along with his father and he wound up on the streets until his conviction — which revoked his green card.

"I thought I was a normal kid," he says. "I didn't know the aspects of it."

Garman has tried various avenues since then to try to prove some sort of status. Changing his birth location to Livingston, a city some 400 miles north of the Mexico border, is just the latest attempt.

According to documents provided by Garman, he has tried several times to be issued a Social Security number and was successful once. But, he says, the number was later rescinded when the agency realized he didn't qualify.

The documents also show that he tried to claim citizenship under a provision of immigration law that says anyone of "unknown parentage" found under age 5 on U.S. soil is a citizen, unless foreign birth is established before that individual turns 21. That application was denied, as was his application for a passport under the same provisions.

The rejection letter said in part, "your parentage was known.... Because your mother left you with a baby sitter, you were not considered to have been 'found' in the United States.... Your earlier documents consistently stated your birthplace to be Mexico."

He also risked breaking federal law by marrying a U.S. citizen friend to see if he could gain legal status that way.

But even though his then-wife's petition for him was accepted, because of his felony conviction he still would have had to pay a $1,000 penalty and a waiver of deportation, along with his application, said Maria Elena Garcia-Upson, spokeswoman for U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. That waiver would have required showing his wife would suffer "extreme hardship" if he were deported, according to Garcia-Upson.

Garcia-Upson said there's no record that Garman ever actually filed an application, and he's since divorced his wife, which nullifies her petition on his behalf. Garman says he did go to an interview with an immigration official, who told him he'd need more information before he could apply.

Now that his birthplace will be changed to the United States, Garman may have the proof he needs to obtain a Social Security number. However, because of his age, he'll need an interview to explain why he's never had a number before, said agency spokesman Doug Smith.

To receive a Social Security card, a person needs two documents to prove age, birth date and U.S. citizenship or legal work immigrant status.

If Garman can use his new birth registration to qualify, he says the first thing he'll do is get a state identification card or driver's license. He looks forward to being able to drive without the fear that routine traffic stops could lead to his car being impounded because he has no license, insurance or registration.

Looking to the future, he wants to put to use the knowledge he's gained from years of odd construction jobs by applying for a contractor's license.

And he hopes that soon, "I can get a bank account, a good job, my own house.... I haven't even had a place of my own.... It's going to be a totally different world."

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E-mail: dbulkeley@desnews.com