U.S. Marine veteran Jose Segovia Benitez was on a plane, about to be deported to El Salvador, when his journey — and his exile — was put on hold.
Segovia was pulled off the aircraft and his deportation was halted, at least for now, on Wednesday, Oct. 16.
UPDATE: U.S. Marine veteran Jose Segovia Benitez of Long Beach is deported to El Salvador
Immigration officials gave Segovia a temporary reprieve — five days for attorneys to file documents in his case while California Gov. Gavin Newsom considers granting the Long Beach resident a pardon. For now, Segovia is being held in a detention center in Florence, Arizona.
“We asked the governor to rule on (the pardon) on an emergency basis,” Dallas attorney Roy Petty said Thursday.
The governor’s office declined to comment on Segovia’s pardon request.
Segovia’s story — he’s a non-citizen, combat veteran who ran afoul of the law after returning from military duty in the Middle East and faces deportation — has drawn support from around the country. Not only is Petty’s Texas law firm, Petty & Associates, working on his behalf, so is Green Card Veterans, a Chicago chapter of the League of United Latin American Citizens, or LULAC.
For supporters, and for Segovia’s family, the last-minute twist in his deportation saga was both exciting and confusing.
His mother, Marta and her husband, Jose Garcia, spent part of Wednesday at LAX debating whether they should stick with their plan to fly to El Salvador to help their son. They didn’t want Segovia to be alone should he be sent to a country the 38-year-old hadn’t seen since he was 3.
Meanwhile, a supporter from Oregon, Brandee Dudzic, who has visited Segovia regularly and filed a 522-page application asking Gov. Newsom for a pardon, arrived in El Salvador on Wednesday, also in a bid to help him navigate that country. On Thursday, Dudzic, who heads the group Repatriate Our Patriots, was looking for a ticket back to the United States.
But what happens next for Segovia was, and remains, unclear.
Supporters are hopeful his story will resonate with Newsom.
“We learned of the case last year and thought it was outrageous,” said Carlos Luna, president of the group Green Card Veterans and a Navy veteran.
“At the end of the day, we have a Marine who served his country honorably. And as a result of his service, (he suffered from PTSD,)… made some poor decisions,” Luna said. “By any means, we believe exile is over the top when it comes to the punishment.”
Segovia has spent close to two years at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center after immigration agents picked him up in January 2018 and began his deportation process. His supporters and his local attorney, Wayne Spindler of Encino, argued that Segovia’s five years as a U.S. Marine, including two combat tours in Iraq, should afford him better treatment and prevent his deportation.
The Marine, who grew up in Long Beach, entered the military in 1999 as a non-citizen with legal permanent residency. He filed an application for citizenship while he was still in the military but the process was not finalized, his supporters said. (This week, his Texas lawyers filed a new citizenship application for Segovia.)
Segovia returned from Iraq in 2004 after suffering a brain injury that was never treated properly, his family and friends said. Instead of being reintegrated into civilian life with proper medical care, his physical and mental health needs were ignored. He turned to substance abuse and got in trouble with the law, serving prison stints for driving under the influence and felony convictions, including domestic violence, assault with a deadly weapon, and other charges.
A spokeswoman with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency has repeatedly declined to answer specific questions about Segovia’s case. Instead, on Thursday, she referred to an earlier statement noting that deportations are decided by immigration judges.
Segovia, she added, has “an extensive criminal history” with several felony convictions.
Tom Sanchez, a Dallas attorney working with Petty, poured over Segovia’s records in recent days and said he was struck by what he called “exaggerated” charges.
“When they say, ‘He’s been convicted of all these crimes,’ and then you pull back and see what the crimes are, they are overstated,” Sanchez said. “If you look at what he did that caused the aggravated felonies, people are normally convicted of misdemeanors for these things.”
One example was a weapon charge: “The deadly weapon was a screwdriver that he had in his pocket. He didn’t use it.”
“No one condones violence,” Sanchez added, referring to Segovia’s convictions for assault. “But the only weapon he used was his fist. This is a 5’2″ man using his fist. And he’s convicted on aggravated assault.”
“The D.A. charged with everything they could,” said Sanchez, also a Marine veteran.
Had Segovia paid for private attorneys, the outcome in these cases would likely have been different – not only on the criminal side but on the immigration side, the Dallas attorneys said.
“Mr. Segovia did not understand when he was pleading guilty that this could cause his deportation,” Petty said.
“This is an example of where certainly a person with more money would probably have paid a high-priced lawyer and either (negotiated to) undo those charges…or have have an attorney who knew the immigration consequences,” he said.
Segovia’s family and supporters also note that he has served time for his crimes. They complain that the move by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency agents to detain him in Adelanto was the equivalent of double jeopardy.
They also believe deportation to El Salvador could endanger Segovia. As an English-speaking former Marine who wears his patriotism on his body – via large tattoos of the Statue of Liberty and the U.S. Marines – Segovia could be a high-profile target for gang members.
Supporters are hoping Segovia won’t be exposed to that possible danger.
“We’ve been calling elected officials and asking people to contact Gov. Newsom to grant him a pardon,” said Robert Vivar, co-director of Unified U.S. Deported Veterans, a Tijuana-based organization helping organize the efforts.
Those backing him said they are hopeful a deeper look into his records will save him from deportation and net him a pardon.
“We wish the governor looks at the details of what he actually did,” attorney Sanchez said. “That’s what we’re relying on.”
Luna, of Green Card Veterans, said he expects a decision soon.
“I don’t see him sitting in limbo for very long.”
