Eugenio Gonzalez-Espinoza (A#098-726-804) has been detained and separated from his family for over 7 months, at the Elizabeth Contract Detention Facility in Elizabeth, New Jersey.

Eugenio came to the US with his parents at 19. He came undocumented, and was stopped at the border, eventually leading to a voluntary departure. His parents, one legal permanent resident and a citizen, didn’t know that he would have been eligible for a green card, so they never applied. And when he was stopped by immigration, he was never given a trial.

In December 2012, Eugenio  was arrested on charges that were later dropped, but due to his past interaction with immigration authorities, he was transferred to ICE custody, detained, and once again placed in deportation proceedings.

Eugenio is a credit to their community. He has no criminal convictions but rather is a deeply religious man who is an active volunteer of St. Mark´s Church in Sea Girt. He is also a responsible son. His parents want him to have a chance to have their support.

In addition, he fears for his life if he is deported. Three of his family members have been murdered in his home town as a result of their family’s political affiliations. If he is sent back to Mexico, Eugenio fears his life would be at risk.

Please support Eugenio and his family by sending immigration an e-mail in his support.

ICE Acting Director John Sandweg,
ICE Deputy Assistant Director Andrew Lorenzen-Strait,

I’m writing in support of Mr. Eugenio Gonzalez-Espinoza (A#098-726-804), who has been detained and separated from his family for over 7 months at the Elizabeth Contract Detention Facility in Elizabeth, New Jersey.

Mr. Gonzalez-Espinoza came to the United States in 2006 at the age of 19 to be with his mother who is a legal permanent resident of the United States and his father, a United States citizen. When Eugenio entered the U.S. in 2007, he qualified for a green card but he did not know it. He was later detained and signed a voluntary departure, without being offered a hearing or trial before a judge. In December 2012, Mr. Gonzalez-Espinoza was arrested on charges that were later dropped, however he was transferred to ICE custody and detained. In January 2013 Immigration and Customs Enforcement re-instated his order of removal from 2007.

Mr. Gonzalez-Espinoza should not be facing detention and deportation. Eugenio is a credit to their community. He has no criminal convictions but rather is a deeply religious man who is an active volunteer of St. Mark´s Church in Sea Girt. He is also a responsible son, who has deep ties to his community in the United States, including his legal permanent resident mother and US citizen father. Lastly, Mr. Gonzalez-Espinoza fears for his life if he gets deported to Oaxaca, Mexico, because three of his family members have been murdered as a result of their family’s political affiliation. If he is sent back to Mexico, Eugenio fears his life would be at risk.

I urge you to consider Mr. Gonzalez-Espinoza’s case and use positive exercise of prosecutorial discretion to stop his deportation and keep him with his family.

Thank you,

Categories: Victories