Judge Halts Immigrant Queens Cabbie's Deportation, Lawyers Say

NEW YORK, NY — A Manhattan federal judge has halted the deportation of the Queens taxi driver arrested by immigration authorities at a courthouse last month, his lawyers said. U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla issued a stay of deportation late Thursday for Edisson Barros, blocking Immigration and Customs Enforcement from removing him to Ecuador, according to the Legal Aid Society.

"We welcome this decision affording Mr. Barros a genuine opportunity to stay in this country while he fights his immigration case," Gregory Copeland, one of Barros' Legal Aid lawyers, said in a statement.

The NYPD arrested Barros in May following an altercation with a disgruntled driver who almost ran over his dog, his supporters have said. ICE picked him up July 16 after a court appearance in Queens and detained him at the Hudson County Correctional Facility in New Jersey.

Barros was scheduled to be deported to his native Ecuador as early as Aug. 10. While he can't be removed pending the outcome of his federal court case, Barros was recently transferred hundreds of miles from his two daughters to an ICE facility in Louisiana, Legal Aid said.

Barros' case drew attention from City Council members and advocates, including the prominent civil-rights activist Shaun King. A spokesman for Barros' family celebrated Failla's ruling as a win for those who fought for him.

"This monumental victory is the culmination of dedicated grassroots organizing and people coming together for what is morally right," said Carols Jesus Calzadilla-Palacio, the president of the Young Progressives of America activist group, in a statement. "We will continue fighting to ensure Edisson's freedom, and for the dignity of all undocumented immigrants."

Barros first came to the U.S. more than two decades ago and has since built a family and career as a New York City taxi driver. His two daughters, Paola and Eileen, depend on him financially, his supporters say.

While ICE did not immediately comment on the stay, the agency has said Barros re-entered the country illegally after immigration authorities removed from the U.S. in February 2003 under a judge's order.

(Lead image: Edisson Barros is pictured with his younger daughter, Eileen. Photo courtesy of Paola Barros/GoFundMe)