A Derby man who is undocumented and had been scheduled for deportation to his native Guatemala will be allowed to stay in the United States for two more years.
Luis Barrios and his daughter, Jessica, were all smiles shortly after meeting Friday with officials of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement and receiving documentation about the deportation reprieve.
"I'm very happy," Barrios said at a news conference at the Legislative Office Building. His daughter called the federal decision "a great blessing ... We can relax now."
Barrios' lawyer, Erin O'Neil-Baker, attributed the federal decision to grant a temporary stay of the deportation order to community pressure and appeals from Connecticut's congressional delegation.
O'Neil-Baker thanked U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., who was at the news conference with Barrios, for his "extreme efforts" to help get the deportation reprieve approved. Before speaking to reporters, Barrios gave Blumenthal a hug.
Blumenthal, along with Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-3rd District, and Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., worked with immigration officials for the past month to try to block deportation. Blumenthal said Barrios faced "serious risks of death, torture or serious injury" if he had been sent back to Guatemala.
O'Neil-Baker said the two-year reprieve will give Barrios a chance to once again apply for U.S. sanctuary and take advantage of all his legal options.
"Luis Barrios deserves to remain in the United States permanently and I am overwhelmed with joy that he has been granted a two-year stay," DeLauro said in a statement.
Murphy issued a statement saying he is "so glad that Luis knows that he can stay here at home with his wife and kids."
In 1992, Barrios fled his native Guatemala because of threats of violence. His father received death threats, and soon after he left his father was killed. In 2004, his brother was murdered.
Barrios was ordered to be removed from the U.S. in 1998 when, after applying for asylum, he failed to show up for a hearing. He came back onto immigration authorities' radar in 2011 when he was pulled over by state police for a broken taillight and turned over to federal agents. But Barrios was granted a stay of removal that has been renewed each year until now.
Blumenthal called the Barrios case "exceptional" but added there are other undocumented immigrants in Connecticut who are facing deportation despite having no serious criminal record.
"Mr. Barrios isn't alone in this struggle," O'Neil-Baker said.
