Deportation Halted For Connecticut College Student From Mexico
HARTFORD, Conn. (CBSNewYork/AP) -- A Mexican college student who won allies in Connecticut's governor and two U.S. senators as he fought a deportation order will be allowed to stay in the country for now, Sen. Richard Blumenthal said Tuesday.
Mariano Cardoso, who will soon graduate from Capital Community College in Hartford next month, won a temporary reprieve from the U.S. government. He said he felt relieved and honored that Blumenthal spoke up for him along with Gov. Dannel Malloy and Sen. Joe Lieberman.
"With the three of them, I guess they had enough power and enough momentum to be an advocate for me," Cardoso said. "I feel really privileged and honored that they assisted me."
WCBS 880's Fran Schneidau with more details
Podcast
Blumenthal said the Department of Homeland Security called his office to say Cardoso had been granted a stay of removal. He said the decision means Cardoso is not in danger of deportation for at least a year, and the stay is likely to be renewed routinely unless Cardoso commits a crime or there is another serious difficulty.
A spokesman for U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment.
Cardoso, 23, has lived in the United States since his family entered the country illegally when he was 22 months old, eventually settling in New Britain, Conn.
He has been fighting to stay in the country since his illegal status came to the attention of authorities in August 2008, when immigration agents intervened in a gathering in his uncle's backyard. After his attorney told him two months ago that further appeals would be fruitless, he began telling his story publicly in hopes of staving off deportation.
Blumenthal met with him personally, Lieberman's office said it was seeking a solution and Malloy last week asked the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to defer the deportation.
"The merits of this case are so compelling that in his situation, Mariano's situation, this decision was clearly the right one," Blumenthal said.
Blumenthal said the long-term solution is the DREAM Act, legislation that would provide a path to citizenship for certain young people such as Cardoso who were brought to this country at a young age. It has failed to pass Congress several times, most recently in December.
Cardoso, who is nearing completion of a liberal arts degree, said he hopes to pursue another degree in the United States and become a civil engineer.
(TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
