Ingrid Encalada Latorre, a Peruvian mother of two living in the U.S. unlawfully, has received a delay in her deportation after having a last-ditch-effort pardon request .
Her supporters said Friday that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement granted her 30 days to make arrangements before she must leave the country. ICE said in a statement that it is working with Encalada Latorre’s attorney “regarding her departure plans.”
“I appreciate Immigration and Customs Enforcement granting me and my family time,” Encalada Latorre said in a written statement. “My son Bryantap passport has not yet arrived, and my son Anibal has just been ordered to see an eye specialist at (Colorado) Children’s Hospital. The appointments there are booked into October.”
Friday was the day Encalada Latorre’s from ICE expired after a judge last month on the grounds she got bad counsel from an attorney. She was hoping a pardon from Hickenlooper would prompt federal immigration officials to reconsider her case.
“I sympathize with Ms. Encalada Latorre’s difficult circumstances and deeply regret the hardship she and her family may experience,” Hickenlooper said in a statement Thursday, released at the same time his staff informed Encalada Latorre of the decision at the Capitol. “But clemency is the wrong approach to fixing our broken immigration system. It cannot, on its own, stop the deportation process.”
The Democrat said his reasons for not granting clemency included Encalada Latorre’s criminal record and the fact that the victim, who did not support clemency, suffered significant consequences.
Encalada Latorre, 34, claimed sanctuary at Mountain View Friends Meeting House in Denver in December 2016 to avoid deportation. She didn’t leave until May, when she was granted the stay that expired Friday.
Her children — ages 1 and 9 — are both U.S. citizens. Encalada Latorre has lived in the U.S. for more than 15 years.
“I am saddened and angered today,” Jennifer Piper, of the American Friends Service Committee, said in a written statement Friday. “… Despite Ingrid’s deep Colorado roots, our systems have worked only to exploit and dehumanize her. We’ve accepted her labor and economic contributions when convenient and attempted to discard her when not. Employer sanctions only punish the mom, sister and neighbor working there. Itap unconscionable and designed to ensure workers are exploited.”