( CNN ) -- A 4-year-old U.S. citizen who was unable to enter the country this month because of a possible communications mix-up is expected to attempt the journey again on Wednesday , according to her lawyer . `` It 's a grave injustice that she has been separated from her parents for so long and we 're here to rectify that situation , '' said lawyer David Sperling , in Guatemala City , Guatemala . Emily Ruiz , the daughter of Guatemalan immigrants living in New York without documentation , had spent five months recuperating from asthma while visiting with her grandparents in Guatemala , Sperling said . When her grandfather accompanied her on a flight back to the United States on March 11 , he was stopped by a customs official at Dulles International Airport in suburban Virginia for an immigration violation dating back some 20 years , the lawyer said . He was denied entry into the United States , and that placed Emily in the middle of an immigration quagmire . According to her family , immigration officials gave her parents two options : Emily could be sent to Guatemala with her grandfather , or she could be turned over to state custody . She returned to Central America . `` She was basically deported to Guatemala , not in the legal sense , but effectively this is what happened , '' Sperling said . `` We 're not here to criticize the government ; really , we do not know who is responsible for this . '' U.S. Customs and Border Protection said last week that they offered to have the parents pick Emily up . `` CBP strives to reunite U.S. citizen children with their parents . If the parents choose not to take custody of their children , CBP works with other agencies to ensure the children 's safety and well being , up to and including releasing them into the custody of other relatives , '' spokesman Lloyd M. Sterling said . `` In this case , the parents were offered to pick up the child , but elected to have her returned to Guatemala with her grandfather . '' Officials say they gave Emily 's father the opportunity to pick her up , because she is a U.S. citizen . The father , who speaks limited English , said he did not understand if that was indeed offered . CNN 's Adriana Hauser contributed to this report .
She will try to return to the United States on Wednesday , her lawyer said . Emily Ruiz , 4 , a U.S. citizen , was stopped at an airport . Her mother and sister were also detained by border agents who questioned them about their citizenship status.