Protesters call for immigrant's release (The Detroit News)

Protesters call for immigrant's release

Last Updated: October 20. 2011 1:00AM
Josh Katzenstein/ The Detroit News

Detroit— More than a dozen people braved the rain Wednesday afternoon to rally in front of the Detroit office of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on behalf of Cesar Hernandez Montoya, a man they hope won't be deported to Mexico.

The 24-year-old, who lives with his family in Sturgis, has been detained at the Calhoun County Correctional Center in Battle Creek since August, when police found him driving without a license and later discovered he didn't have proper immigration documents.

Montoya, a Sturgis High School graduate, worked as a disc jockey and was hoping to go to college next year, family members said. He was active in church and the community and never had a problem with the law before the traffic violation.

In a statement Wednesday, immigration officials said Montoya will remain in custody until his removal proceedings; no date was available Wednesday.

"(He) was allowed to voluntarily depart to his home country on two separate occasions and returned without permission prior to his most recent arrest," the statement read. "Following a hearing, he was denied bond by an immigration judge and ordered detained. He remains in custody pending the outcome of removal proceedings."

More than 2,000 people sent petitions to ICE asking for Montoya to be freed, and Wednesday's rally was an additional show of support, backers said.