Help Us Defend Uriel's Civil Rights

Since I last updated the issues my husband is facing, more details have become available to assist us in forming a campaign for his release.

I.C.E is unwilling to lift their immigration detainer they have on Uriel due to a PENDING charge. We have strong reason to believe that using a pending charge as the basis for their hold violates Uriel's civil rights of due process and the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty.

The burden of proof for the charge in question is the responsibilty of the district attorney residing over Uriel's case. They are the ones required to prove guilt.

Due process allows my husband the benefit of presumption of innocence. Uriel is not required to prove his innocence...it is the state who is burndered with proving guilt and such guilt has NOT been established in Uriel's case.

In addition, the county judge is reluctant to allow Uriel to reinstate his bond for the criminal charge he's facing because of the I.C.E hold, so in turn, I.C.E's actions are violating yet another one of Uriel's rights...in this case the right to bail.

Update 3/18/14: Uriel's defense attorney has advised us the judge is considering Uriel's bond reinstatement.

It is our belief that I.C.E should be required to condition their I.C.E hold to be operable only upon conviction and that I.C.E should lift their hold for the following prosecutorial discretion points:

A. Uriel was brought into the country as a child(age 13) and has resided here for the majority of his life...for over 20 years.

B. Uriel has substantial ties to our community and family. He's lived right here in Denton, TX for the entire portion of his life here in the United States.

C. The conditions of Uriel's home country(Mexico) have changed very dastricly over the 20 years he's been in the U.S. His standard of living, and the standard living of our U.S. citizen children would suffer greatly if he were deported back to Mexico and we followed him to keep our family united. Some of our greatest fears about having to relocate to Mexico to keep our family together are our children all suffer chronic medical conditions such as asthma and sleep apnea and Mexico's healthcare system will not suffice for their treatments; Our children are NOT fluent in Spanish, thus they will struggle to obtain a decent education in Mexico that would equate to the quality of education they'd receive in the United States; There has been widespread drug violence in Mexico that my children would be subjected to.

D. Uriel has a U.S citizen spouse and 3 U.S citizen children

E. Uriel is the one who takes care of our children when I'm incapacitated due to a chronic condition known as MRSA that has left me often hospitalized 3-4 times per year and also creates very deep and wide spread wounds that Uriel assists in caring for and leave me unable to walk or move much. Especially during times of my MRSA flare ups, I will get stiff joints and inflammation that renders me unable to care for my children. Mind you, when I am ill and the children need medical careand treatement for their chronis conditions, it is URIEL who provides such.

F. The government's own immigration attorney stated that Uriel is a great candidate to seek adjustment of status thru the consulate. Last year, a provisional waiver was passed that would allow immigrants to remain in the country while awaiting their visa appointments. Uriel has a great chance of qualifying for the provisional waiver as well he stands a great chance to adjust his status, thus another positive factor of prosecutorial discretion in Uriel's favor..

G. Uriel is considered to be legally blind without the aid of his contact lenses and has diabetes, which provides the prosecutorial discretion point regarding his health and how it should be taken into consideration.

2/16/14-EDITED TO ADD: The county jail has had trouble maintaining Uriel's blood sugar levels for the past week. Prior to being in county jail, our family has always been able to keep Uriel's blood sugar levels in control with his diet and prescribed medication. Due to the emotional stress and drastic change in diet, Uriel's blood sugar levels have reached levels that can now only be remedied with insulin. Even with such a prognosis, Uriel has not been allowed to see the doctor yet and was told he wouldn't see the doctor until WEDNESDAY-2/19/14 at the earliest.

It is my hope, that with the assistance of social media, our community, friends, and family, we can create a petition to request that I.C.E immediately desist in violating Uriel's right to due process by lifting their I.C.E hold based on prosecutorial discretion or by conditioning the I.C.E hold to only be operable upon conviction. Accomplishing either would then allow Uriel the right to bail and the right to due process.

Please, if you have any information on agencies or tips to assist us in this campaign to bring Uriel home, email me at SarrahC1981@yahoo.com

Thank you, once again, to all of you for supporting our family in our time of need.

We MUST Bring Uriel Home

Five years ago, after my husband Uriel was placed on an I.C.E hold after being arrested for no driver's license, I was told by many immigration attorneys that there was literally NO HOPE of bringing my husband home to our children on the U.S side of the border.

They all told me that the best option would be to have Uriel sign a voluntary departure and fight for his residency thru the consulate in Mexico.

Perhaps this IS the only option...if the immigrant in question had no established ties to the community he was being ripped from and not been in the country for any substantial length of time or didn't have UNITED STATES CITIZEN CHILDREN AND A SPOUSE. However, in Uriel's case, it was the opposite.

My husband was brought as a child into this country. Suffices to say that for the past 20 years of his life, he has lived in the United States, making our small little town known as Denton, TX his home for his entire life in the U.S. When you break it down into simple math, you can essentially say, Uriel has lived MOST of his life here...not in Mexico.

I grew up with my husband...friends and family can attest to the fact that we've always been joined at the hip. Naturally, our love for each other comes as no surprise, nor would the decision to get married and create a family together.

I hold my family near and dear to my heart and any threat posed to my family is a threat I don't take lightly. Fortunately, due to my reluctance to simply believe and accept what was being shoveled my way, I discovered that we could get Uriel released on an immigration bond...at the hefty price of $5,000, while he awaited his removal proceedings. In part, the I.C.E officer granted the bond after I, without the help of an immigration attorney, advised them Uriel could be relieved from removal proceedings via cancellation of removal.

Our family, now, is being threatened for the SECOND time by Immigration and Customs enforcement. Uriel has his hearing in April, but due to an unfortunate event, he surrendered himself on an arrest warrant due to a bond issue over a pending charge of failure to stop and render aid.

Despite Uriel professing innocence and his plan to invoke his right to trial by jury, I.C.E has taken it upon themselves to issue an I.C.E hold due to the PENDING charge, which is in turn serving as punishment for a crime Uriel has NOT even received due process for, let alone been convicted of.

I.C.E is also refusing to use prosecutorial discretion despite all the factors in Uriel's favor and the negative impact his absence will have on our children and myself...all U.S citizens whom just happen to have various health issues that will be worsened by Uriel's absence.

The price of sending Uriel to Mexico will cost more than just money...it will cost my children and me our entire livelihoods.