News & Commentary written by Jesús Alonso Arreola Robles

Jesús Arreola is a 23-year-old resident of the Los Angeles area. He has lived in the U.S. since he was one year old. DHS found him eligible for and granted him DACA in 2012, 2014, and again in 2016. At the time that DHS terminated his DACA, Arreola was working two jobs to help support his family — as a cook at the famed Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood and as a driver for Uber and Lyft. Through his earnings, Arreola helped support his parents, both of whom are lawful permanent residents, and his three U.S. citizen sisters — one of whom has significant disabilities.

Despite Arreola’s lack of any criminal history and his valid DACA grant, federal immigration authorities arrested him in February 2017 while he was driving a customer. Authorities falsely alleged that he was trying to help smuggle the customer’s relatives into the United States and placed him in deportation proceedings. Even though an immigration judge promptly rejected the smuggling allegation, and he was never charged with any crime, DHS revoked his DACA and, with it, his ability to work and support his family.