Judge orders release of Portland immigrant activist
PORTLAND, Ore. -- A federal judge has ordered the temporary release of an immigrant activist who took refuge at an Oregon church to avoid deportation and was arrested this week on a federal charge of illegal re-entry.
Judge Janice Stewart on Friday ordered Francisco Aguirre, 35, to be released while he's awaiting the start of his trial on Jan. 13. Aguirre pleaded not guilty to his charge in court.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials confirmed ICE has lifted its detainer on Aguirre, meaning his removal from the U.S. is on hold pending the outcome of his criminal case.
Aguirre, who is from El Salvador, was arrested Thursday at the Clackamas County federal courthouse. He was there to settle a recent driving under the influence charge, to which he pleaded guilty and accepted a diversion program.
Aguirre has lived in America illegally for 19 years. In 1999, he was convicted for selling drugs to undercover police officers in Portland, and he was deported back to El Salvador. He returned to the United States soon after, but federal officials weren't aware of it until August, when Aguirre was arrested for the DUI.
Prosecutors revealed Thursday in court that Aguirre's blood alcohol concentration level was 0.12 that night, over Oregon's 0.08 limit.
In September, after Aguirre was indicted by a grand jury on the illegal re-entry charge ICE agents showed up at Aguirre's home in Fairview, Ore., to arrest him. He says they couldn't provide a warrant and left after he refused to come outside.
Augustana Lutheran Church in Northeast Portland has let him live inside the church for sanctuary ever since. Immigration officials have a policy to not arrest people in sensitive locations such as a church.
Aguirre, now the coordinator of a Portland nonprofit that runs a day labor center, says he's turned his life around as a community organizer and wants the system to change so he won't be separated from his wife and his children, who were born here and are U.S. citizens.
A bus-load full of his supporters arrived at the courthouse on Thursday, holding signs and asking for immigration reform. Aguirre addressed the crowd, saying, "Mister Obama, here I am asking you. We are not one, we are not 100, we are 11 million asking for justice, asking for immigration reform. We have given a lot to this country and it's time to say yes! Yes to immigration reform!"
On Thursday night, Portland Mayor Charlie Hales said Aguirre was an asset to the community.
"Francisco Aguirre is an important voice on the issues of equity and immigration rights," he said. "He clearly loves this community and fights to make it better. And for this, we are grateful."
Another crowd of supporters, including the pastor of the church where Aguirre took sanctuary, packed Portland's federal magistrate's court to capacity for Friday's hearing. Aguirre's wife, Dora Reyna, wiped away tears in the front row when Aguirre walked in wearing blue jail scrubs.
His attorney, Ellen Pitcher, told the judge that Aguirre did not plan to run. She said he had been "kidnapped, tortured, and otherwise abused as a child" in his country of birth, and had "no intention of taking flight to El Salvador."
Aguirre's release conditions include a ban on travel outside Oregon, a ban on changing his place of residence, and surrender of all travel documents.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Greg Nyhus, who is prosecuting the case in Oregon, declined to comment.
According to a report by the Pew Hispanic Center, nearly all of those sentenced for unlawful re-entry in federal courts received a prison sentence. On average, the sentence length for these offenders was about two years.
It's unclear whether Aguirre will return to the church or will live at home once he is released and awaiting trial.
Aguirre's immigration lawyer, Stephen Manning, had said Aguirre was in the process of obtaining a U-visa, a special document for violent-crime victims who help authorities investigate or prosecute cases.
Contributing: Associated Press