Family: Mentally Disabled Man Mistakenly Deported
June 12, 2007, 6:07 AM PDT

Family: Mentally Disabled Man Mistakenly Deported The family of a mentally disabled man who was recently deported to Mexico is suing the Department of Homeland Security and the L.A. County Sheriff's Department, claiming the agencies mistakenly deported an American citizen.

The family said it has been searching for Pedro Guzman in Tijuana for a month, and fears that he's living in the streets or possibly worse.

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"My worst fear is that he is no longer living," said Guzman's brother, Michael Guzman. "He doesn't know how to read. He often can't remember the family phone number. He even gets lost if he gets off the main street in Lancaster."

It all began when Pedro Guzman, 29, a resident of the desert city of Lancaster, was sentenced April 19 to 120 days in jail for a misdemeanor trespassing violation, according to the suit filed in federal court.

At the Men's Central Jail in Los Angeles, he was asked about his immigration status and responded that he was born in California, according to the suit.

Sometime after that, the Sheriff's Department identified him as a non-citizen, obtained his signature for voluntary removal from the United States and turned him over to U.S. Customs and Immigration Enforcement for deportation, according to the suit.

The American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, which helped file the suit, has Pedro Guzman's birth certificate showing he was born at Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center, said spokeswoman Celeste Durant.

Sheriff's spokesman Steve Whitmore said the department correctly followed procedures.

"My understanding is that this individual said he was a Mexican national and was in the country illegally when we interviewed him," said Whitmore. "We turn that information over to immigration officials, who then re-interview him."

Immigration and Customs Enforcement confirmed he had been deported, and said the agency had done so correctly.

"ICE only processes persons for removal when all available credible evidence suggests the person is an alien," read a statement. "That process was followed here and ICE has no reason to believe that it improperly removed Pedro Guzman." An agency spokeswoman declined further comment because the lawsuit was pending.

On May 11, Guzman called the home of half brother Juan Carlos Chabes in Lancaster, said Michael Guzman. He spoke briefly with Chabes' wife, telling her he had been deported but didn't know to where.

So he asked a passer-by where he was, and Chabes' wife heard a man respond, "Tijuana," said Michael Guzman.

"That's how we realized he was there," said Michael Guzman.

Then the phone cut off and the family hasn't heard from him since. In Tijuana, they've put up fliers, visited police stations, jails, hospitals and morgues, but haven't been able to locate him.

The family has asked various U.S. government agencies for help finding him but have been denied, said Catherine Lhamon from the ACLU of Southern California.

"It's astonishing that the government who deported him by mistake has done nothing to help," said Lhamon.

Lhamon said Pedro Guzman had previously done jail time for drug possession, so he had a record that could have been cross-checked before a deportation decision was made.

Michael Guzman said his parents were from Mexico, but seven children, including Pedro, were born in California. He said Pedro spoke both English and Spanish, but couldn't read or write either.

About a week before being deported, he called from jail to say he would soon be released and put on house arrest, said Michael Guzman.

In the last two weeks, Michael Guzman said several letters have come to the house reminding his brother to show up at probation-related meetings.

"He obviously isn't going to make those," he said.

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