GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ) – A Green Bay man is fighting to stay in the United States after being cited for driving without a license back in 2017.
Raymundo Martinez-Moreno was arrested almost a year later, police said he didn’t show up for court after being cited. He claims he has no criminal record and has lived in the area with his wife for the last 18 years.
He is now working with an immigration advocacy group to stop his deportation.
“We have an online petition that is now available that is going to the immigration judge to ask for proprietorial discretion which would say a person is not a priority for deportation,” said Christine Neumann-Ortiz from Voces de la Frontera.
In a statement from Immigration and Customs Enforcement it says the incident isn’t its first encounter with Martinez-Moreno:
“Martinez-Moreno was arrested by the U.S. Border Patrol in 1997 and 2004 after attempting to illegally enter the U.S. On both occasions, he was granted voluntary return to Mexico. Non-criminal aliens from Mexico who are encountered by immigration authorities may be granted a “voluntary return” to their home country. By accepting the VR, the alien admits that they are illegally present in the United States and agree to be returned as soon as possible. VRs are usually effected within one or two days. A VR does not have the same legal consequences as an official removal.”
Immigrants who don’t have a social security number haven’t been able to get a Wisconsin license since 2007. Governor Tony Evers is hoping to change that with his state budget proposal.
