Filipino green card holder wins deportation case in US
An immigration judge dismissed the deportation case of the 44-year-old Filipino green card holder. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File
NEW YORK - A Filipino green card holder has been released from the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, Washington.
This came after an immigration judge dismissed the deportation case against 44-year-old Rodante Rivera.
Rivera was arrested by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officers at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on May 18 after returning from a vacation in the Philippines.
The reason CBP intercepted Rivera was due to a conviction from decades ago.
Rivera, whose spouse is an American citizen, has been living in the US for many years.
Just last month, the court also released 64-year-old Filipina green card holder Lewelyn Dixon.
Dixon was also intercepted and detained at an ICE facility due to a conviction from two decades ago.
In the immigration judge's ruling, it was stated that these old convictions could no longer be used as grounds for deportation to the Philippines.
The good moral character of both Rivera and Dixon also contributed to the dismissal of their deportation cases.
Meanwhile, another Filipino green card holder with a prior conviction remains detained at the ICE facility in Seattle.
The lawyers of Maximo Londonio have requested an expedited hearing for his case before the immigration court.
Londonio was also intercepted at the airport upon returning from a vacation in the Philippines on May 14.
The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers Union condemned the isolation of Londonio, who is a lead union member.
They claim Londonio was being targeted after becoming vocal about the allegedly inhumane conditions inside the detention facilities. —KG, GMA Integrated News
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