Antonia

Antonia was brought to the United States by his mother when he was 13 years old.  Now he has been here for 10 years.  He enrolled in high school as a sophomore and graduated.  He earned a “B” in drivers education.  His time in high school included some rough spots and he received two DUIs as well as several other driving tickets.  He started dating Laura when he was 20 and his driving greatly improved.

The couple moved in together three years ago and are currently buying a trailer, furniture and a car.  They had baby Sophia one and a half years ago.  Laura dropped out of high school but is working on her GED.  Last September (2011) Antonia received a ticket for not stopping completely at a stop sign.  He was picked up by ICE and taken to a county jail in Missouri.  Laura was not working and was left with no income.  Fortunately they had saved enough money to pay bills for one month.  In October, she borrowed $5,000 for his bail money and drove to Missouri to return him home.  He had two jobs but lost them both with one months absence.  She took a night job at a fast food restaurant and he has obtained part-time work.  They have used all savings and are under great stress financially.  He has received a notice from ICE saying that he will have an immigration hearing in New Orleans in November of 2012.  They are unclear about what the outcome will be or how to obtain legal representation in New Orleans.  They are model parents and baby Sophia has the temperament and curly hair of little Shirley Temple.  She refuses to let him out of her sight and the only word she knows is da-da.  Laura has taken the GED exam but will not know the results until January.