Thread: CA: Woman crippled by drunk IA fights to deport them

San Jose-Area Woman, Crippled By Drunk Illegal Alien, Fights To Deport DUI Invaders
Mercury News

The family of a Los Gatos woman whose legs were mangled this summer by an invader believed to be driving drunk is stepping up its campaign for stricter deportation rules, hoping to push lawmakers to close a little-known loophole that excludes DUIs.

Sara Cole’s family has met with a handful of lawmakers, including Rep. Mike Honda, D-Campbell, since the Sept. 9 incident in which Lucio Rodriguez allegedly slammed into her while she was standing outside her sport-utility vehicle at a Little League event, nearly severing her legs. The mother of four is recovering from her injuries, but may never regain full use of her legs.

The case outraged her family after the Mercury News reported that Rodriguez - believed to be in the country illegally - had spent 10 days in a Santa Clara County jail in March on a misdemeanor drunken-driving count but had never been interviewed by immigration officials to begin deportation proceedings.

The story also shone a light on cracks in an immigration system that doesn’t always whisk illegal immigrants away after convictions, but instead bases its priorities on the seriousness of the charges against them.

Officials said one of the key problems is a lack of funds to hire more immigration agents to monitor all cases, resulting in agents focusing on serious felonies like murder and rape.

“Had he been deported, this wouldn’t have happened to Sarah,â€

Maybe Ms. Coles family should start this campaign by lobbying the Chairwomen of the Congressional Immigration Subcommittee, Representative Zoe Lofgren. She represents San Jose and is currently just about the biggest and most powerful supporter of amnesty and new rights for illegal aliens within this Congress.