COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- An Ohio immigration judge has granted green cards to the parents of a desperately-ill Filipino teenager so they can stay in Columbus to care for their daughter.

The Columbus Dispatch reports ( http://bit.ly/q1wk4J ) that Jackylyn Siglos Gonzales was born with a devastating set of birth defects known as CHARGE syndrome which make it hard for her to breathe and require she be fed through tubes.

Gonzales turns 18 in February and would need a court-appointed guardian, since she cannot care for herself.

Columbus attorney Ken Robinson is representing Gonzales' parents and says they are not eligible because of their immigration status.

The parents came to the U.S. on visitor's visas in 1992. Those expired in 1994, but in January the couple turned themselves hoping to resolve their situation.

---

Information from: The Columbus Dispatch, http://www.dispatch.com