A University of Georgia student is facing deportation after being pulled over for running a red light, leading to the discovery that her family has lived in the U.S. illegally for nearly 15 years.
Ximena Arias-Cristobal, a 19-year-old from Mexico, was stopped by police in Dalton, Georgia, on May 5 for not following a “no turn” sign.
As a student at Dalton State Community College, she was driving without a valid license but claimed to have an international one, according to an arrest report from WTVC.
When asked for her license by the officer, she said she didn’t have it with her and implied she was not driving, which led to further complications.
Her family had brought her to the U.S. illegally from Mexico City in 2010 when she was just four years old, after traveling over 30 miles from the Tennessee-Georgia border.
Due to her non-citizen status, Arias-Cristobal has been paying out-of-state tuition for her education.
Reports say the officer tried to communicate with her teenage mother and the car’s owner, but language barriers made it difficult.
Ultimately, Arias-Cristobal was arrested on charges of driving without a valid license and not following traffic control regulations.
She was taken to Whitfield County Jail, which works with the U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement (ICE) under the 287(g) program, designed to identify undocumented immigrants.
Following her arrest, her information was processed through a federal database that confirmed her non-citizen status.
She has since been moved to the ICE Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia, where her father, Jose Francisco Arias Tovar, is also being held.
Reports indicated that her father was arrested last month for speeding. Despite running his own business, he has been denied the necessary documents to remain in the U.S., although it’s unclear if he has ever sought citizenship.
Arias-Cristobal, unfortunately, does not qualify for the DACA program since she arrived a year after it was established. Her sister mentioned that they had contacted lawyers about obtaining a job permit or visa for their father, but they were still awaiting progress.
To help with legal fees and bond money, her family has started a GoFundMe campaign.
Immigration attorney Terry Olsen has called for the family’s detainment, voicing concerns about the ICE’s methods of identifying legal violations, suggesting the process may miss crucial details.
According to Olsen, Arias-Cristobal’s mother might face arrest and deportation within a month, and there are worries about keeping the family together.
