Arizona judge strips activist of green card, orders her deported to Mexico
An Arizona judge has stripped a prominent Washington-area immigration and reproductive rights organizer of her green card and ordered her deportation.
The Washington Post reports the immigration judge on Tuesday also denied 33-year-old Alejandra Pablos’ petitions for asylum, saying the Mexican-born legal permanent resident wouldn’t qualify because reproductive rights activists aren’t deemed a group in need of protection.
Pablos reportedly told the judge she feared she would be targeted for persecution in Mexico, where abortion is largely illegal and activists she knows have received death threats.
Pablos was arrested in March when she traveled to Phoenix to check in with immigration officials on a pending deportation case stemming from a felony conviction for driving under the influence.
According to Tucson.com, Pablos’ immigration status was questioned in the aftermath of several criminal convictions from 2005 to 2010. Those included DUI, endangerment, aggravated DUI and solicitation to possess a dangerous drug.
Pablos’ supporters believe her activism made her a target of Immigration and Customs Enforcement, which the agency denies.
A petition asking Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey to pardon the 2010 DUI arrest has amassed more than 16,000 signatures this week.
The Washington Post reports immigration is under federal jurisdiction, and a gubernatorial pardon can’t negate a deportation order. However, by eliminating the reason for a deportation – the felony conviction from 2013 – a pardon could prevent the woman’s looming deportation.
