Woman ordered deported after she sought sanctuary
A woman who entered the country illegally years ago and recently sought sanctuary in a Columbus church has been denied her last means of staying in the country.
Edith Espinal was forced to purchase a plane ticket to leave the country on Monday during an appointment with U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement officials. If she did not, she was told she’d be taken into custody.
Espinal has a ticket for a flight to Mexico at 8 a.m. on October 10, said one of her attorneys, Inna Simakovsky, of Simakovsky Law.
The reason Espinal was given for why her stay was denied was that she’s an “enforcement priority,” said Simakovsky, who is meeting
“It was more of a quality of life thing. Being in sanctuary is not a quality of life.”
— Maria Ramos, case manager
with Espinal this week to plan what’s next.
She was allowed to go back to her Columbus home with her three children and husband after the appointment, but will have to report back to the ICE office on Oct. 2.
Espinal, 39, stayed in sanctuary at the North Side Columbus Mennonite Church for two nights earlier this month before she was told she could apply for a stay of removal. She then went home to her three children and husband and submitted the application on Sept. 18, with several letters of support from local officials and community members, Simakovsky said.
Espinal could choose to go back into sanctuary or leave the country on Oct. 10, Simakovsky said.
“I think all options are open to her,” she said. “I don’t know if any of them are good options considering she needs to be with her family and Mexico has some issues right now.”
Maria Ramos, a case manager with the nonprofit Avanza Together, which helps people facing deportation, said Espinal keeps changing her mind about what to do next.
“It was more of a quality of life thing,” Ramos said. “Being in sanctuary is not a quality of life.”
Faith leaders and others gathered outside LeVeque Tower on Monday morning to show support for Espinal.
“They’re all feeling the grief of this tragedy their family is going through,” said the Rev. Dan Clark, Ohio director of Faith in Public Life. “They seemed subdued and they left together as a family.”