Biden Administration Grants Stays of Removal for Five Immigrants Living in Sanctuary

The Biden administration has temporarily blocked the potential deportations of five undocumented immigrants who have been living in sanctuary in Colorado churches.

“Neither the pandemic nor my deportation process have ended, but knowing that I am going to have a stay of removal was the best Christmas gift that will make my life less difficult,” says Jeanette Vizguerra, who has been living in the First Unitarian Society in Capitol Hill and was named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in 2018.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement has a general policy that agents should not enter sensitive locations, such as churches, for enforcement purposes. As a result, some undocumented immigrants worried about being deported have taken sanctuary in such institutions across the country.

They include Rosa Sabido, Ingrid Encalada LaTorre, Arturo Hernandez Garcia and Sandra Lopez, who are all in sanctuary at Colorado churches and have received stays of removal that block their deportations for one year. Encalada LaTorre, who was visited in 2019 by Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, got word of her stay earlier in the year, as did Sabido, while the other three just recently received their notices.

“I am really surprised with the news that I have a stay of removal,” says Lopez, who has been living in a church in Carbondale. “For me it is like a Christmas and New Year gift, I am very grateful, and thank you very much from the bottom of my heart to all who participated in this and have made it possible. My stay in this country is now safer. Love is power,  and love for my family sustains me.”

Democrats in Colorado’s congressional delegation have been pushing for years to secure stays of removal, which will allow the five individuals in sanctuary in this state to work toward permanent immigration status without worrying about being deported.

“We’re delighted that, following our request earlier this year, the Biden administration has chosen to grant these individuals stays of removal so that they can more fully thrive in our communities without fear of deportation,” says Congressman Joe Neguse, a Democrat whose district includes the Unitarian Universalist Church of Boulder, where Encalada LaTorre has been living with her three children.

“They have lived in Colorado for decades, enriching our economy and adding value to our communities, and should not have been a priority for deportation. This stay of removal will be life-changing for each of these individuals and their families, and we welcome this new chapter for each of them,” Neguse adds.

Under the administration of Barack Obama, some people in sanctuary received temporary stays of removal. But after Donald Trump took office, the executive branch offered no more stays. As a result, Colorado’s Democratic lawmakers in Congress filed private bills on behalf of some of those living in sanctuary, which created automatic but temporary stays.

There are varying reasons that Immigration and Customs Enforcement has been trying to deport these five individuals. For example, Vizguerra and Encalada LaTorre have past convictions for possessing the Social Security number of another person. In late 2019, Governor Jared Polis pardoned Encalada LaTorre, eliminating one of the major obstacles facing the Peruvian immigrant as she tries to gain legal immigration status.

“Since your conviction, you completed your probation and paid restitution and back taxes,” Polis wrote when he issued the pardon in December 2019. “You are a dedicated and caring mother to your three children. You are working to educate others on legal ways to obtain employment and the consequences of using false documents.”