Mario: From Breadwinner to Purgatory
Mario had worked non-stop since arriving from Mexico 33 years ago, commuting 80 miles each day to a carwash in Santa Ana.
He was proud to be the sole breadwinner for his wife and three children.
Last August, despite his family’s pleas to stay home amid the raids, he reported to work. He heard yelling, saw co-workers running, and hid in the restroom.
An officer swung open the door, and soon Mario was in handcuffs.
He spent six nights on a cold holding cell floor, huddling with others for warmth, then two months at Adelanto, where he fell ill.
He was released in October after a habeas corpus petition.
Now he must check in with ICE via an app and cannot work while awaiting a final deportation hearing in July.
>>> Michigan Cyclosporiasis Outbreak Sickens Over 700, Hospitalizes 36
His son pays the bills. “Life has been a sort of purgatory,” he said.
