Wednesday, March 14, 2012

Md. Family Faces Deportation, Receives Grassroots Support

Jorge Steven Acuna
WBOC-TV
SNOW HILL, Md. - Nineteen-year-old Jorge Steven Acuna, his mother Blanca and his father Jorge Sr. were reportedly held at the Worcester County Detention Center in Snow Hill. They still face possible deportation.

According to the nonprofit Casa de Maryland, the Germantown family moved to the United States and was denied asylum from political violence in Colombia. Jorge was set to graduate from Montgomery College.

Friends have started an online effort to try and raise support for the Acunas to stay in the country.

"We're just trying to serve justice because a family as good as this deserves to be here," said Jorge's best friend Erin Lundy.

Lundy visited the Acunas at the jail on Tuesday, where the family has been held for about a week now. Late in the day, Lundy confirms the Acunas were released from the jail, and that they will likely join supporters who plan on holding a rally in Rockville on Wednesday. The case is pending.  

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement told WBOC in a statement: "ICE also takes discretionary actions based on the merits of a case," adding that ICE recognizes there needs to be serious solutions to the nation's "broken immigration system."

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