http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20 ... 044388.asp

Immigration charge dismissed by judge
1/26/2007

A criminal charge accusing a Honduras man of being in the United States illegally has been dismissed by a federal judge.

Martir J. Ayala-Ayala, 35, was arrested Jan. 15 by federal agents at the Peace Bridge. He told agents he illegally entered the United States from Mexico and was trying to get to Canada to find work.

The criminal charge was dismissed on legal grounds by U.S. Magistrate Judge Hugh B. Scott, but Ayala-Ayala is still in government custody and subject to deportation, according to his federal public defender, Timothy W. Hoover.

Scott ruled that Ayala-Ayala cannot be prosecuted criminally because being found on the Peace Bridge does not legally constitute being found inside the U.S.