Man facing deportation to Mexico seeks Lakewood's help to remain in US. City says no
Jose Robles thinks the city of Lakewood can save him from deportation. City officials say they can't.
The dispute went public Tuesday when Robles and a number of his supporters marched on Lakewood police headquarters and then City Hall.
At issue is what's called a "U visa." People in the United States illegally can qualify for the document and a halt to deportation proceedings if they are victims of a crime and provide helpful information to law enforcement.
Robles was robbed at gunpoint in May and has repeatedly worked with authorities by providing information about a potential suspect, said Victoria Mena, policy director and development strategist at Colectiva Legal del Pueblo. Colectiva Legal del Pueblo is an organization that provides immigration legal services and advocacy for migrant justice.
Robles moved to the United States from Mexico 18 years ago and has lived in Lakewood for nearly 10 years, said his daughter, 24-year-old Brenda Robles.
Robles' attorney, Sandy Restrepo, said Robles has been fighting deportation for eight years and was ordered for removal in February after a judge ruled it would not be a hardship for his family if he was sent back to Mexico. He is still set to be deported Thursday morning.
Roble and his supporters believe those proceedings could be stopped if Lakewood police signed a U visa certification form that states he was the victim of crime. So far, police have declined to do so.
“I am very upset because we were really expecting to get the signature, and they wouldn’t give us a reason why," Robles said Tuesday as he and his supporters went to police headquarters.
Once there, Robles and his supporters were directed to assistant city attorney Kimberly Cox for the signature. At City Hall, Lakewood spokeswoman Brynn Grimley acknowledged the request but said that no further action could be taken.
"We are following what state law says and immigration law says. We understand this is an emotional issue. We are sympathetic to that," Grimley said. "I cannot speak to the specifics of this. That is something I don’t know. But we are following what the law indicates. That is all I can say."
Mena said Robles has done his part in contributing to law enforcement's efforts to find the suspect in the robbery.
"The family is suffering, and all they have to do is put a signature on a piece of paper, and they won’t even tell us why they don’t do that," Mena said.
The family asked for an emergency stay from the Board of Immigration Appeals. A stay would grant Robles an unspecified amount of time in the United States. The board rejected the appeal. Mena said they are looking into further actions to prevent Robles' deportation.
“Lakewood is our city. It is our home, and they are letting us down at the moment. I am losing a lot of respect for the authority that I thought they had in helping us," said Brenda Robles.
Meredith Spelbring: 253-597-8509, mspelbring@thenewstribune.com
This story was originally published June 26, 2018 at 6:23 PM.