Judge grants bail to several immigrants in logistics case; they still face immigratio
Judge grants bail to several immigrants in logistics case; they still face immigration custody
December 21, 2017
Daniel Connolly
A federal judge on Thursday ordered at least five immigrants released on bond in a document fraud case related to the arrests of 20 people at a Memphis logistics company.
In more than one of those rulings, Magistrate Judge Tu M. Pham mentioned the defendants' U.S.-born children as a factor in their favor. The defendants will likely be transferred to immigration custody and will have to argue for release on bond once again.
Among those granted bond Thursday was Marlon Martinez of Honduras, accused of using a fake document to get a job at a staffing company. Bond was set at $20,000 with a $2,000 cash deposit to be paid to the court clerk.
About 11 friends and family members came to court to support him. After the judge's ruling, his wife Olaya Martinez said she was ecstatic and that the family was well-established in the community. "I'm so happy ... I have my house, I have my job. We're not running anywhere." She said she's a naturalized citizen from Mexico and the four children in the family are likewise citizens.
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Marlon Martinez is accused of using fake documents to get a job through a staffing agency. (Photo: Shelby County Sheriff's Office)
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Raquel Delin-Ramos, referred to in some court records as Raquel Delin. (Photo: Shelby County Sheriff's Office)
Outside the courtroom, defense attorney Charles S. Mitchell said it was a good outcome. “I think the judge ruled correctly after looking at the statutory factors."
"My client is relieved. She’s one step closer to getting back to her two children.” He said the children are currently staying with a friend.
The government prosecutor, Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Delery, has said she's not authorized to comment to the news media.
The defendant's problems are not over: She will almost certainly be placed into immigration custody.
Mitchell said he'll work with Latino Memphis attorney Casey Bryant to try to convince an immigration judge to let her out on bond in that case.
And after that, Delin-Ramos could still face a federal prison sentence on charges that she used fraudulent documents to obtain work at a Memphis logistics company. And she could also face eventual deportation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lauren Delery argued against bond and described 32-year-old Delin-Ramos as a liar. She said she’d been twice caught at the Arizona border in 2004 trying to enter the country illegally, had promised to return to Mexico in exchange for release, but came back anyway.
"She disregarded her promise not to return and her order not to return immediately." She also said Delin-Ramos has an incentive to run away, since she faces both deportation and charges in a serious criminal matter. "It's a crime of dishonesty," Delery said.
The government also said the immigration hold on Delin-Ramos meant that she'd be taken into custody upon making bond, which could disrupt the criminal case.
Delin-Ramos used a fake green card with someone else's information to get a job at Provide Staffing Services, the company that placed the workers at Expeditors International, Special Agent Kenneth Clark with Homeland Security Investigations testified.
Arrests at Expeditors International were carried out Nov. 28 by the Tennessee Highway Patrol and federal immigration authorities.
Delin-Ramos' defense attorney said she’s originally from Veracruz state in Mexico, has lived in North Mississippi and Memphis for about 15 years and has no criminal convictions.
The defense attorney also said that even though she faces up to 10 years in prison on the document fraud charge, a much shorter sentence is likely in her case — anywhere from zero to six months. (The government lawyer said the sentence would likely be four to 10 months.)
The defense lawyer also said that due to her status as a victim of domestic violence, she'd started an application for a U-Visa, a special immigration document. That and other factors gave her hope of achieving legal status, he said. (The government witness said she hadn't actually filed the U-Visa application.)
Mitchell, the defense lawyer for the mother of two, said Delin-Ramos might bond out of immigration custody.
He cited the case of Arturo Robles-Larios, who had faced state charges in this case, made bond from 201 Poplar, was placed in immigration custody, and is now out on immigration bond as the federal criminal charges are pending.
The judge left the courtroom for several minutes, then returned and gave a lengthy analysis. He said he found credible the government's testimony that Delin-Ramos was in the country illegally and also gave credit to Clark's testimony that she'd used a fake document to get a job.
He said these factors worked against her.
But he said the other factors, including the small children, worked in her favor.
The judge set bond at $10,000, with a $1,000 deposit required. If she makes it out of immigration custody, she'll have to take steps including wearing an ankle monitor, the judge said.
The judge set different bond amounts and conditions for other defendants.
Earlier this week, Magistrate Judge Charmaine G. Claxton ruled against bond for Fernando Ramos-Jacobo, saying the immigration hold against him would disrupt the criminal case.
Several other of the defendants in the case have said they're not seeking bond. Their lawyers have said they'd just be placed in immigration custody anyway. They include husband-and-wife Edgar Lopez-Marin and Hilda Hernandez, whose children have reportedly been taken into state care by a Mississippi child welfare agency.
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