Maria “Lulu” Martinez’s family says ICE should be chasing after violent criminals, not straight-A students.
VENICE, Fla. — Across the nation, immigration detention centers are now housing over 50,000 individuals; among them is an honor student from Sarasota County.
Maria “Lulu” Martinez, who was brought as a child from Mexico to Florida, now faces the prospect of returning to her country of birth. Her family shared their concerns for her safety with 10 Tampa Bay, should she be returned.
“She’s a vital part of this community and a very responsible person,” said Martinez’s mother, Lourdes, through an interpreter, noting they had a brief conversation on Friday morning. “She’s incredibly strong and reminded me to stay calm and not to overly worry, as she is trying to process everything happening to her.”
She showed us her daughter’s honor roll certificates from high school and says the associate’s diploma from the State College of Florida proves she deserves to stay with her family. But six months after her graduation, Lulu’s family says she’s at a Texas detention facility.
Two weeks ago, she was pulled over for making an illegal U-turn. Local police discovered she was driving without a license and shared her undocumented status with ICE.
“I know that we are here undocumented, or what some people would say illegal,” Lourdes said. “But my daughter doesn’t deserve what’s happening to her. She doesn’t deserve to be detained.”
Florida leads the nation in the number of local and state agencies assisting with federal immigration enforcement.
“We’re sorry that this young woman needs to be deported, but she does, and that’s on her parents for coming here illegally in 2015,” Rod Thomson with the Republican Party of Sarasota County said. “Taking everything that America and Florida has to offer but not respecting our laws for entrance.”
Still, Martinez’s family says ICE should be chasing after violent criminals and felons, not a straight-A student with a business degree.
“As immigrants, we will think that [President] Trump will get the criminals, the real criminals,” Martinez’s sister, Kasandra, said. “My sister, she has a career, she pays taxes, she has a job. She’s not a criminal.”
Their case has caught the attention of immigrant advocates who are planning a press conference Saturday in Lakewood Ranch, demanding Martinez be set free.
The rate of arrests and deportation proceedings may increase over the summer. White House “border czar” Tom Homan says currently, ICE is arresting 1,000 people a day. But there’s now a new goal of 3,000 arrests a day.
