DREAMer lawyer says Juan Manuel Martinez is traumatized following release

UPDATE 5/5/2017 6:20 p.m.:

The family of a Salinas DREAMer is talking about the impact being in federal custody had on him. Juan Manuel Martinez, 19, had been in federal custody for five weeks, after he was mistakenly handed over to ICE officers at the Monterey County Jail.

“He doesn’t talk,” his sister Viridiana Martinez said. “All he does is he wants to be sleeping. He cries a lot. He’s not the same.”

Viridiana Martinez said it was a stark contrast from what he was like earlier this year.

His ordeal began at the Monterey County Jail, when he was busted for allegedly having drugs in his car.

In an interview with KION earlier this week, Monterey County Sheriff Steve Bernal said the crime he was arrested for was not a minor offense but the crime was pleaded down to a misdemeanor, which would be considered a minor offense.

“We settled on a charge of trespassing, which should have no effect immigration wise,” defense attorney Miguel Hernandez said.

But it did.

For safety reasons, inmates are asked to fill out a form. One of the questions: If they or any family members have gang affiliations. Martinez said yes. His attorneys argue the form was too vague and didn’t ask specifically who had the gang ties. They are also adamant Martinez told authorities he was not a Norteño.

Sheriff Bernal said the error has been corrected.

“This is a new system that we’re working,” Bernal said. “We couldn’t predict this obviously or it wouldn’t have happened. So yeah I can say this is a one-time thing. It was a simple fix, something that we didn’t see coming but we fixed it. One person slipped through the cracks.

Attorneys also brought up concerns that ICE mistakenly reported his DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) status has expired.

“I mean, this fellow has gone through major trauma for at best, sloppy work, at worst, abuse of authority on two levels,” Immigration lawyer Blanca Zarazua said.

While Martinez has been released from federal custody, his fate is still unknown.

“We are very confident that we will prevail in the deportation hearing because there’s no basis for deporting him,” Zarazua said. “He’s never been out of DACA status and he’s currently not out of DACA status.”

His attorney plans to file a motion to stop the deportation hearings. No word when he could be back in immigration court.

ORIGINAL POST:

The family of Juan Manuel Martinez, the Salinas DREAMer detained by federal officials, is speaking out about his release.

An immigration judge ruled the 19-year-old should be released from ICE custody after a bond hearing on Wednesday. His family said they picked him up, he was immediately different.

“When Juan Manuel got home, it was clear that this was not the Juan Manuel that everyone had known,” immigration lawyer Blanca Zarazua said. “The damage to his spirit is evident and deep. Juan Manuel has been violated. He is traumatized and he is in no condition to answer questions from anyone.”

Martinez was originally arrested on March 2 by Monterey County Sheriff’s Deputies after they found marijuana and meth in his car while on jail property. His attorney said he was able to settle on a charge of trespassing, which should have no effect on his DACA status.

That’s where his nightmare began.

Monterey County Sheriff’s Office Sheriff Steve Bernal had said there was a form that is filled out for incoming inmates asking if they or a family member are affiliated with a gang. The form for Martinez indicated he or a family member was affiliated with a gang, when in fact he personally was not.

On Monday, Bernal said the form was used to determine gang affiliation with the purpose of keeping inmates safe inside the jail. During Martinez’s release, Bernal said ICE flagged him because of the designation that Martinez was affiliated with a gang.

“We’ve corrected that error and we hope that no one falls through the cracks again and we are continuing to monitor it,” said Bernal.