Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Immigrant Held After Army Base Pizza Delivery Released
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 6 years ago on
July 25, 2018

Share

NEW YORK — An Ecuadorean immigrant who was held for deportation after delivering pizza to a Brooklyn Army installation walked out of an immigration detention center house hours after a judge ordered his immediate release.
Pablo Villavicencio exited the detention center shortly before 9 p.m. Tuesday. He was greeted with hugs from his jubilant wife and two young daughters. He thanked supporters and the media before being whisked away in an SUV.
U.S. District Judge Paul Crotty said Villavicencio, who was being held at a New Jersey lockup, can remain in the United States while he exhausts his right to try to gain legal status.

“Although he stayed in the United States unlawfully and is currently subject to a final order of removal, he has otherwise been a model citizen.” — U.S. District Judge Paul Crotty
Villavicencio applied to stay in the U.S. after he married a U.S. citizen, with whom he has two young girls.
The judge cited those children and said they are U.S. citizens.
“He has no criminal history,” the judge wrote. “He has paid his taxes. And he has worked diligently to provide for his family.”
The U.S. government, which had wanted the case moved from New York to New Jersey, did not immediately comment on the judge’s action.
Adriene Holder, the attorney-in-charge of the civil practice at the Legal Aid Society, said the rule of “law, humanity and morality” prevailed and the Villavicencio family has “finally received a crucial measure of relief from their 53-day nightmare.”

A Rebuke Against the Trump Administration

“This decision should serve as a rebuke against the Trump Administration and its merciless crusade to tear families apart,” Holder said in a statement.
The judge ruled after hearing arguments earlier Tuesday, when he put a government lawyer on the spot over the effort by immigration authorities to enforce a 2010 deportation order. He questioned the need to detain and quickly deport Villavicencio, who’s 35 years old.
“Well, the powerful are doing what they want, and the poor are suffering what they must,” the judge said after hearing Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Cordaro defend the government’s actions.
“I mean, is there any concept of justice here or are we just doing this because we want to?” the judge asked. “Why do we want to enforce the order? It makes no difference in terms of the larger issues facing the country.”
Cordaro argued for the case to be transferred to New Jersey because Villavicencio is detained there. He said legal precedent dictated that New Jersey was the proper venue, an argument the judge rejected.
Cordaro said Villavicencio would still be able to pursue his application to become a legal U.S. resident after he is deported.

Attracting Widespread Attention

The case has attracted widespread attention amid a crackdown by the administration of President Donald Trump on illegal immigration. Trump, a Republican, has said his policies are designed to keep the country safe.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo, a Democrat, said the federal government has “cruelly” kept Villavicencio from his wife, Sandra Chica, and two daughters “for no legitimate reason.”
Villavicencio was arrested on June 1 while making a delivery to the garrison in Fort Hamilton. When he arrived at Fort Hamilton, guards requested identification, and he produced a city identification card. A background check showed he had been ordered to leave the United States in 2010 but stayed.
Villavicencio’s two girls, ages 2 and 4, played with toys on Tuesday as courtroom spectators around them observed the legal arguments. Villavicencio was not in court.
Another judge had already temporarily blocked his deportation.

DON'T MISS

Homeowners’ Effort to Leave Sierra Unified Ends With County Ed Rejection

DON'T MISS

Will Terance Frazier’s Nonprofit Exit Granite Park or Fight?

DON'T MISS

Fresno Crash Sends Pickup Into Tree, Dark Tint Cited as Cause

DON'T MISS

November Has Scattered Cool Temps, Rain Showers for Fresno

DON'T MISS

Beyoncé Makes Grammy History With ‘Cowboy Carter,’ Leading 2025 Nominations

DON'T MISS

Macklin Celebrini, NHL’s Youngest Player, Scores on Marc-Andre Fleury, League’s Oldest

DON'T MISS

Ramsey, Beckham Return to SoFi Stadium When the Struggling Dolphins Visit the Streaking Rams

DON'T MISS

San Francisco’s First Black Female Mayor Concedes to Levi Strauss Heir

DON'T MISS

FBI Thwarts Iranian Murder-for-Hire Plan Targeting Donald Trump

DON'T MISS

Israeli Soccer Fans Were Attacked in Amsterdam. The Violence Was Condemned as Antisemitic

UP NEXT

Israeli Soccer Fans Were Attacked in Amsterdam. The Violence Was Condemned as Antisemitic

UP NEXT

Middle East Latest: Israeli Defense Minister Officially Steps Down

UP NEXT

Wave of Racist Texts After Election Prompts FBI Scrutiny

UP NEXT

Americans Seek Fresh Start Abroad as Election Sparks Expat Interest

UP NEXT

Large Airstrikes Hit Beirut Suburbs as Israel Expands Northern Gaza Operations

UP NEXT

Putin Congratulates Trump on His Election Victory in His First Public Comments on the US Vote

UP NEXT

8-Hour Russian Drone Barrage Keeps Kyiv on Edge as War in Ukraine Nears 1,000 Days

UP NEXT

Cuba Left Reeling After Category 3 Hurricane Ravages Island and Knocks Out Power Grid

UP NEXT

Trump Promises to Bring Lasting Peace to a Tumultuous Middle East. But Fixing It Won’t Be Easy

UP NEXT

Lebanon Files Complaint Against Israel at UN Labor Body Over Deadly Pager Explosions

November Has Scattered Cool Temps, Rain Showers for Fresno

3 hours ago

Beyoncé Makes Grammy History With ‘Cowboy Carter,’ Leading 2025 Nominations

3 hours ago

Macklin Celebrini, NHL’s Youngest Player, Scores on Marc-Andre Fleury, League’s Oldest

3 hours ago

Ramsey, Beckham Return to SoFi Stadium When the Struggling Dolphins Visit the Streaking Rams

4 hours ago

San Francisco’s First Black Female Mayor Concedes to Levi Strauss Heir

4 hours ago

FBI Thwarts Iranian Murder-for-Hire Plan Targeting Donald Trump

4 hours ago

Israeli Soccer Fans Were Attacked in Amsterdam. The Violence Was Condemned as Antisemitic

4 hours ago

Longtime Dodgers Ace Clayton Kershaw Is on the Mend After 2 Surgeries

5 hours ago

USDA Bans School Lunch Fees for Low-Income Families

5 hours ago

Christian McCaffrey Expected to Make Season Debut for 49ers This Week

5 hours ago

Homeowners’ Effort to Leave Sierra Unified Ends With County Ed Rejection

In a meeting far more muted than the previous two, Fresno County education officials denied a petition from homeowners to leave Sierra Unifi...

46 mins ago

46 mins ago

Homeowners’ Effort to Leave Sierra Unified Ends With County Ed Rejection

1 hour ago

Will Terance Frazier’s Nonprofit Exit Granite Park or Fight?

2 hours ago

Fresno Crash Sends Pickup Into Tree, Dark Tint Cited as Cause

3 hours ago

November Has Scattered Cool Temps, Rain Showers for Fresno

3 hours ago

Beyoncé Makes Grammy History With ‘Cowboy Carter,’ Leading 2025 Nominations

3 hours ago

Macklin Celebrini, NHL’s Youngest Player, Scores on Marc-Andre Fleury, League’s Oldest

Rams
4 hours ago

Ramsey, Beckham Return to SoFi Stadium When the Struggling Dolphins Visit the Streaking Rams

4 hours ago

San Francisco’s First Black Female Mayor Concedes to Levi Strauss Heir

Search

Send this to a friend