Pizza guy’s deportation put on hold
Pizza man’s deport is put on hold
AN IMPRISONED immigrant pizza delivery man received a slice of good news Saturday when a Manhattan judge put his imminent deportation on hold.
Manhattan Federal Judge Alison Nathan ordered a last-minute stay of Pablo Villavicencio’s removal after his lawyers filed an emergency petition.
Villavicencio, 35, will remain at an ICE detention facility in New Jersey as his lawyers prepare to argue for the lifting of his deportation order.
“Although we are disappointed that Pablo will remain detained, today’s stay is a victory for him and his family, and also for due process and the fair administration of justice,” said lawyer Gregory Copeland of the Legal Aid Society’s immigration law unit.
Villavicencio has been languishing in custody since June 1, when he was arrested while delivering a pizza to the Fort Hamilton Army base in Brooklyn.
ICE agents scooped up the Ecuadoran man after a military guard uncovered a 2009 deportation order against him.
Villavicencio entered the U.S. in 2008. Two years later, he was granted a voluntary departure but failed to comply.
In the ensuing years, he got married to an American citizen and moved to Hempstead, L.I.
He and wife Sandra Chica went on to have two daughters — Luciana, 3, and Antonia, 2.
Villavicencio’s application for permanent residency is pending.
In the court filing requesting a stay, Villavicencio’s lawyers noted that he was “abruptly detained by ICE following apparent ethnic profiling while he was working.”
The lawyers added that the family couldn’t be reunited in the event of his deportation because Antonia has a congenital heart defect and requires specialized care from her New York doctors.
The imprisoned man’s court filing contained more than a halfdozen letters from friends and city and state politicians.
In a note to the judge, Villavicencio’s wife said his detention has devastated their family.
“Each day feels like I am literally dying,” Chica wrote. “My two daughters look at me and my heart breaks.”
A hearing in his case is slated for July 20.
“The court agreed with our argument that Pablo should be afforded a full and fair opportunity to present his case in federal court,” Copeland said.
“This decision is also a reminder that the judiciary can still serve as a powerful check when other branches of government make hasty, cruel and reckless decisions.”
About 30 demonstrators rallied outside the Kearny, N.J., detention facility Saturday in a show of support for Villavicencio.
“We need to put pressure on the Department of Homeland Security and abolish ICE,” said Carlos Jesus Calzadilla, 20.