Free Dad To-Be from Immigration Jail

I'm Lynn, and I am raising funds to pay bond to free “Fernando” from immigration detention and reunite him with “Lorena,” whom I have had the pleasure of meeting. They are a young Spanish speaking couple expecting a baby. Fernando is in immigration detention in the southwest U.S. and Lorena is in Dayton, Ohio. They fled their home country after gangs killed a family member and threatened the couple.

UPDATED JULY 14: Time is running out to bond Fernando out of immigration detention and re-unite him with his partner Lorena. The urgency is to bond Fernando out BEFORE his individual hearing, scheduled in a little over a week. Our understanding is that once bonded out, he will be reassigned to the much less harmful "released docket" rather than the "detained docket," and the individual hearing will be postponed, giving him much needed time to prepare his asylum case. Without time to prepare his case, the outcome of the upcoming individual hearing could be deportation which would be devastating and dangerous. Scroll down to “great news” for an update on our fundraising and more.

TAX DEDUCTIBLE OPTION: If you'd like to make a tax deductible donation for Fernando's bond, you can do that another way: choose Immigration Bond Fund at https://www.mvicdayton.org/donate to donate by credit or debit card or direct bank withdrawal, or mail a check made out to LEAD with “MVIC Bond Fund” in the memo, 505 Riverside Dr., Dayton, Ohio 45405.

DONATE BY MAIL: mail a check made out to LEAD with “MVIC Bond Fund” in the memo, 505 Riverside Dr., Dayton, Ohio 45405

GREAT NEWS! We have raised $4010 from 32 donors for Fernando’s immigration bond and we need almost $4,000 more as the bond has been decreased from $10,000 to $8,000. Immigration took away his bond for a while (that was bad news), but then, re-set bond, decreasing it to $8,000, perhaps because of the community support shown in the application from an amazing local sponsor for non-bond support. Lorena is developing ties in Dayton, starting to learn English and is conscientiously attending to her health and other preparations for the arrival of their baby. $4,000 more will release Fernando from immigration jail in Texas, re-unite him with Lorena in Dayton, allow him to proceed with making his case for asylum and obtaining a work permit! You can help by donating (again or for the first time) and/or sharing this request with others. Thanks to everyone!

DISCLAIMER, UPDATED : It is extremely likely that all funds contributed will go to pay for Fernando's bond. Our previous disclaimer stated that if unanticipated developments occurred, the funds raised would be used for immigration bond for another person with connection to our area or for related relief. That is still true, but much less likely now that Fernando has a local sponsor and a somewhat lower bond.

IN CLOSING : People should not be in immigration prison simply for being physically present in the country without authorization! It is an international human right to seek asylum. Please share this fundraising appeal with others who might donate! Feel free to use the contact button below if you have questions.

(The image is a tracing of a photograph of Fernando and Lorena, not their real names to protect their privacy.)