DALTON, Ga. — Protestors rallied outside of Georgia U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s office in Dalton after police admitted this week that they mistakenly arrested a 19-year-old girl following a traffic stop who now faces deportation back to Mexico.
Last week, police charged 19-year-old Ximena Arias-Cristobal with making an illegal right turn, but on Monday, officers announced that they got the wrong car.
Arias-Cristobal has lived in the U.S. since her parents brought her here illegally from Mexico when she was four.
A couple of dozen people lined the street outside Greene’s office on Wednesday evening, holding signs saying things like “She’s not a criminal” and “Free Ximena.”
Earlier in the week, Greene released a statement saying, regardless of how Arias-Cristobal was taken into custody, the law is the law.
“While local Dalton officials dropped her charges, the facts remain: she was driving illegally without a license and has no legal basis to remain in the United States. She was brought to the United States at just four years old. Why didn’t her family ever pursue a legal path to stay in this country?
“Today, there are currently 1.6 million American citizens living and thriving in Mexico legally. But if I moved to Mexico illegally with my children when they were young, Mexican authorities would enforce their laws. I would be arrested and deported.
“That’s how sovereignty and the rule of law work. I’m grateful the Trump Administration is upholding our nation’s immigration laws and keeping families together, it’s the right thing to do.”
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Despite the mistaken arrest, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has confirmed to Channel 2 Action News that they intend to move forward with removing Arias-Cristobal back to Mexico.
Just two weeks before Arias-Cristobal’s arrest, her father, Jose Francisco Arias Tovar, was also arrested and placed into ICE custody after he was pulled over for speeding.
Family members said on Wednesday that Arias Tovar had made his $7,000 immigration bond and was expected to be released.
He and his daughter were both being held by ICE at the Stewart Detention Center near Columbus.
Arias-Cristobal is slated to have a bond hearing on Tuesday, which her attorney confirmed is still on despite having the charges dropped against her.
State Rep. Kasey Carpenter, who represents the Dalton area, said there’s not much that can be done to keep Arias-Cristobal in the country.
“Unless they get married or they have a child, and the child grows up, and the child’s 18, then they can petition for their parents. But as far as an individual that’s between the ages of four and 25 there’s, there’s no pathway,” Carpenter said.
Arias-Cristobal’s family said the DACA program stopped accepting new applications before she was eligible.
They also said her father had a hard time getting a work visa.
A GoFundMe account to help with Arias-Cristobal’s legal fees has raised over $83,000 so far.
Information from WTVC-TV was used in this article.
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