Thread: Undocumented student found guilty of driving without a licen

Undocumented student found guilty of driving without a license
By Dan Gilgoff, CNNNovember 11, 2010 10:52 p.m. EST

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
22-year-old Jessica Colotl became a lighting rod in immigration debate this year
The conviction carries maximum of 12 months in jail
Her lawyer says Colotl will appeal the decision

(CNN) -- An undocumented student from Mexico who was arrested and held in a deportation facility after she was stopped for a minor traffic violation in Georgia was found guilty on Thursday of driving without a license.

A jury in Cobb County, Georgia also found 22-year-old Jessica Colotl not guilty of impeding traffic, the reason police gave for pulling her over on the campus of Kennesaw State University.

Conviction on the misdemeanor charge of driving without a license is punishable by up to a year in jail, said her lawyer, Jerome Lee.

The conviction includes a mandatory minimum of 48 hours in jail, of which Colotl has already served around 45 1/2, Lee said.

Lee said that Colotl plans to appeal the verdict.

Colotl became a lightning rod in the immigration debate last spring, when advocates for immigration reform said her case was a symbol of a broken system.

On Thursday, Lee said that she had recently obtained a learner's permit, which he said was grounds to dismiss the misdemeanor charge under Georgia law.

"The jury essentially refused to properly read the statute, as juries often do," he said.

Colotl's legal problems started in late March when her car was stopped on the campus of Kennesaw State.

Born in Mexico but living in the United States since she was 11, she could not produce a driver's license, so she handed over as identification an expired passport from Mexico.

She was arrested the next day and turned over to immigration officials.

She spent more than a month in the Etowah Detention Center in Alabama.

Friends came out in force and marched on campus in her defense. In May, she was released, and her deportation was deferred for a year, which will allow her to finish her studies.

But she was quickly arrested on a warrant for the Cobb County Sheriff's Office and released on $2,500 bail.

"I'm just trying to live the American dream and finish my education," she said at the time.

On Thursday, Lee said that other than completing college, his client's plans for the future are unclear.

"There are so many variables in terms of what's going to happen," he said, "that it's a little too early to say."

http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/11/11/geo ... d.student/

On Thursday, Lee said that other than completing college, his client's plans for the future are unclear.

"There are so many variables in terms of what's going to happen," he said, "that it's a little too early to say."

He knows exactly what his client's plans for the future are! Why do you think they are fighting so hard over this misdemeanor charge of driving without a license. Once this invader graduates from college her attorney will go before another judge and ask that her order of deportation be vacated, on the gorunds his client is a college graduate with a clean record and should be allowed to stay!

This is exactly what they are going to do!

Colotl indicted on felony charge

by Kim Isaza
kisaza@mdjonline.com The Marietta Daily Journal
February 12, 2011 12:00 AM

MARIETTA - A Cobb grand jury indicted Jessica Colotl on a felony charge of making a false statement on Thursday.

Colotl is an illegal immigrant who attends Kennesaw State University, and was the focus of intense scrutiny in 2010 after a traffic stop landed her on the radar of immigration officials.

The felony charge stems from statements made to Cobb Sheriff's deputies when she was booked in at Cobb Jail for driving without a license. During the book-in, she gave her address as an apartment in Duluth, though she did not live there, sheriff's officials content. They also insist the telephone number she gave the deputies was false.

District Attorney Pat Head said his office presented the charge for indictment "because we believe the evidence was sufficient to present to a grand jury."

Head, though, did not personally present the case to the grand jury - a group of citizens who decide if there is enough evidence for prosecutors to proceed with a charge. Assistant District Attorney Greg Epstein is prosecuting this case.

The case has been assigned to a Judge Mary Staley in Cobb Superior Court, though no trial date had been set.

But even if Colotl is ultimately convicted of making false statements, her punishment is unlikely to be harsh. Probation would not be uncommon, Head said.

Attorneys for Colotl did not immediately respond to inquiries for comment. Lawyers from the Norcross-based firm of Hernan, Taylor and Lee represented Colotl in the traffic case.

Colotl's troubles began March 29, 2010, when she was stopped by KSU police officer Sgt. Kevin Kinsey for allegedly impeding the flow of traffic. She told him she had a Mexican driver's license, but couldn't find it. When she failed to produce it by the next day, she was arrested and booked into the Cobb County Jail on charges of driving without a license and blocking traffic.

The jail participates in the federal 287(g) program, aimed at fighting illegal immigration. Colotl was turned over to immigration authorities, who moved her to the Etowah County Detention Center in Gadsden, Ala., on April 1.

With the help of KSU attorneys, Colotl was granted a one-year deferment, allowing her to finish her studies at KSU. She was released by federal immigration authorities on May 5, 2010.

In November, she was convicted in Cobb State Court of driving without a license and sentenced to three days in jail and fined $1,000. She has appealed to the Georgia Court of Appeals, which could hear oral arguments in May and render a decision by the end of the year.

Colotl has said she expects to graduate from KSU in May. She is majoring in political science, with a minor in French and hopes to become an attorney, she said previously.

http://mdjonline.com/view/full_story/11 ... ws_bullets

More on Jessica Colotl

GA: College checking student residency
June 20, 2010
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-203445.html

GA: Cobb Sheriff Asks GBI to Investigate Board of Regents
June 9, 2010
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-202318.html

GA: Illegal college student demands jury trial
June 3, 2010
http://www.alipac.us/ftopicp-1137001.html

GA: Cobb's 'Wild West Warren' Stands Firm (on immig. enforce
June 1, 2010
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-201442.html

College immigration policies under scrutiny in Georgia case
May 17, 2010
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-199497.html

Jessica Colotl shows how Illegal Immigrants get a free ride
May 15, 0210
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-199288.html

Immigration debate swirls around Kennesaw St student
May 13, 2010
http://www.alipac.us/modules.php?name=F ... c&t=198993

GA-Illegal Aliens
May 13, 2010
http://www.alipac.us/ftopict-198948.html

Why do do people continue to submit comments on the source articles crying about not passing the Dream Amensty Act? The DREAM Amnesty Act advocates IN-State tuition for ILLEGALS who now replace innocent American students in the limited seats in college at a time when over 10% of Americans are out of work and their families are struggling to train for new jobs and pay for college. Why would you support in-state tuition for the ILLEGALS that will attract more future ILLEGALS to the United States and train ILLEGALS for jobs it is illegal for them to have. These students should go back to their HOME countries and stop draining our resources that could be used to assist United States Citizens and not the ILLEGALS! Just follow the money! Some of Elitist Politicians and their Elitist Political Contributors want to continue to have United States Citizens pay the benefits for their ILLEGALS while they continue to have their BOTTOM LINES increased at the taxpayer's expense!

http://mdjonline.com/view/full_story/11 ... ws_bullets

Jessica Colotl Indicted On Felony Lying Charge

Posted: 2:36 pm EST February 12, 2011
MARIETTA, Ga. -- A Kennesaw State University student at the center of the national immigration debate has been indicted on a felony charge.

On Thursday, a Cobb County grand jury indicted the college student and illegal immigrant, Jessica Colotl, on a felony charge of making a false statement, Cobb County DA spokeswoman Kathy Watkins said.

Colotl's case gained a lot of attention after she was stopped for a minor traffic violation last spring, arrested for driving without a license and nearly deported.

Officials in the sheriff's office said Colotl gave deputies a false address and telephone number when she was being booked.

District Attorney Pat Head said his office presented the charge for indictment "because we believe the evidence was sufficient to present to a grand jury."

No trial date has been set.

http://www.wsbtv.com/news/26845582/detail.html

Originally Posted by jamesw62

Jessica Colotl Indicted On Felony Lying Charge

Posted: 2:36 pm EST February 12, 2011
MARIETTA, Ga. -- A Kennesaw State University student at the center of the national immigration debate has been indicted on a felony charge.

On Thursday, a Cobb County grand jury indicted the college student and illegal immigrant, Jessica Colotl, on a felony charge of making a false statement, Cobb County DA spokeswoman Kathy Watkins said.

Colotl's case gained a lot of attention after she was stopped for a minor traffic violation last spring, arrested for driving without a license and nearly deported.

Officials in the sheriff's office said Colotl gave deputies a false address and telephone number when she was being booked.

District Attorney Pat Head said his office presented the charge for indictment "because we believe the evidence was sufficient to present to a grand jury."

No trial date has been set.

http://www.wsbtv.com/news/26845582/detail.html

This is excellent news! Time to start holding illegal invaders, who make lying and deception a way of life, accountable for their actions. Perhaps one day, she might even be deported.

Jessica Colotl Indicted, Facing Jail

Kennesaw State Student Accused Of Lying to Police

by Bernard Watson, CBS Atlanta Reporter

POSTED: 4:44 pm EST February 12, 2011
UPDATED: 6:22 pm EST February 12, 2011


AUSTELL, Ga. -- Thursday afternoon, a Cobb County grand jury indicted Jessica Colotl for giving Cobb County Sheriff’s Deputies false statements during a rountine traffic stop in 2010. As a result, the Kennesaw State student, who is in United States illegally, could face jail time.

Richard Pellegrino, the director of Cobb Immigrant Alliance said he is outraged about the indictment.

"I thought Cobb County had grown up a bit and had stopped bullying people. Jessica Colotl is a college student that is no threat to anybody," said Pellegrino.

But the Cobb County District Attorney said the grand jury indicted Colotl because there is enough evidence to prosecute the case.

Colotl has been thrust into the forefront of the immigration debate in Georgia. It’s a position Pelligrino said Colotol shouldn’t be in.

"She has become an unwilling poster child for the immigration issue. It's sad people are getting hurt when they don’t have to," said Pellegrino.

No trial date has been set for Colotl's current case. In November 2010, Colotl was convicted of driving without a license and sentenced to 3 days in jail and ordered to pay a $1,000 fine.


http://www.cbsatlanta.com/news/26846183/detail.html

With the help of KSU attorneys, Colotl was granted a one-year deferment, allowing her to finish her studies at KSU. She was released by federal immigration authorities on May 5, 2010.

This makes no sense. The girl, even after graduation, is not legally authorized to work in this country. She's a candidate for the Dream Act, need I say more?

Apparently a few more charges were ignored.

Originally Posted by magyart

On Thursday, Lee said that she had recently obtained a learner's permit, which he said was grounds to dismiss the misdemeanor charge under Georgia law.

So she had a learners permit as an illegal she says?

Georgia's DMV requires for a learners permit

* Certified birth certificate

* Social Security card

* Certificate of School Attendance, completed within the past 30 days

* $10 license fee

So umm, wheres the ID fraud charges and the DMV fraud charges? Generally illegals don't have a BC or a SS card, hell I doubt she even had a certificate of school attendance.

Maybe she needs to aim for the Mexican Dream or wherever she's from. Stop destroying our dreams.