A Colorado immigration activist who beforehand took sanctuary in a Denver church to keep away from deportation was detained Monday by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, in response to the American Buddies Service Committee.
Jeanette Vizguerra was detained by ICE brokers Monday and not using a legitimate deportation order and positioned on the company’s detention facility in Aurora that’s run by personal contractor GEO Group, in response to a information launch from the committee.
The social justice group mentioned within the information launch that Vizguerra’s attorneys “have raised severe authorized errors and concern her due course of rights are being violated.”
Vizguerra’s daughter, Luna Baez, mentioned in a GoFundMe publish that Vizguerra was detained exterior of her job at a Goal retailer.
“My mother has fought relentlessly for her neighborhood and it’s time for all of us to now come collectively and present all of the help for her like she has completed to us,” Baez mentioned within the fundraising publish.
Vizguerra, a mom of 4, has lived in america for practically 30 years after immigrating to Colorado from Mexico along with her eldest daughter and husband in 1997, in response to the American Buddies Service Committee.
She was pulled over in 2009 for driving with an expired inspection sticker. Vizguerra refused to reply when the police officer requested if she was within the nation legally and was arrested, kickstarting a years-long combat to keep away from deportation and keep within the U.S.
Police searched Vizguerra’s bag and mentioned they discovered a pretend Social Safety quantity. She was charged with misdemeanor identification theft and legal possession of a solid instrument, later pleading responsible to at least one misdemeanor depend.
She served 21 days in jail and was positioned in removing proceedings upon her launch, however sued ICE to dam her deportation.
The immigrant rights activist was additionally denied a U visa in 2019 — a kind of visa that permits undocumented immigrants to stay legally within the U.S.
Vizguerra mentioned the denial cited 11 components, together with having a legal historical past, her feedback to the New York Instances about immigrant rights, a interval when she left the U.S. to go to her dying mom in Mexico and letting her passport expire in 2017 whereas she was in sanctuary.
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