Julio & His Newborn

Country of Origin: Dominican Republic

Currently LIving In: Suffolk County

Julio came to the US from the Dominican Republic when he was 11. He attended elementary and high school here and loved to play sports. He worked as a supervisor at a pet supply store, and adored dogs. His friends describe him as a kind and giving person. Unfortunately, he pleaded guilty in 1996 for criminal sale of drugs, not knowing that he would face automatic deportation after serving his sentence of 4 years to life.

Julio was granted work release after only 3 years. He thought he was piecing his life back together. But on Halloween 2003, when he went to federal plaza to renew his green card, it was quickly torn apart. His fianc'e Melissa, a US Citizen, recalls, 'I was five months pregnant when immigration took him away from me.' Two weeks after being detained Passaic county jail in NJ, he was sent down to Louisiana. Melissa continues, "It has been crazy. Our baby was born when Julio was detained. I had a high-risk pregnancy. He still hasn't seen his daughter, and now he is going back to the Dominican Republic." Julio would eventually be deported, leaving behind 4 children. The whole experience has left Melissa outraged. 'My whole life has been turned around completely, my daughter doesn't have a father. Immigrants make mistakes and citizens make mistakes, but no one deserves to be deported and sent back to a country that they never knew. It is pathetic what they are doing to people. It's a shame that my daughter won't have a father to help her grow up. People just don't realize..."