Face of 'Dreamers' wins temporary protection from deportation

Jessica Colotl says her life flew into turmoil after US officials revoked her protection from deportation last month. She couldn't work. She was scared to drive. And at any moment she feared she could be deported to Mexico.

On Monday, the 28-year-old won a temporary reprieve after a federal judge ordered officials to reinstate her protections under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program while they reconsider her renewal application.

In his order, US District Judge Mark H. Cohen said US Citizenship and Immigration Services officials had not followed proper procedures when they revoked Colotl's protections under the program last month.

Colotl was born in Mexico and was brought to the United States by her parents 17 years ago, when she was 11 years old.

Her case first drew attention in 2010, when a traffic violation on her college campus landed her behind bars and sparked a national debate about how officials should approach the cases of so-called Dreamers, undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as children.

"Jessica is very excited to see justice prevail in this case, and remains confident that USCIS, when it actually adjudicates the DACA renewal, will, this time, follow the correct procedures in making its decision," attorney Charles Kuck said in a written statement after the judge's ruling on Monday.

A spokeswoman for the US Department of Justice declined to comment, describing the case as a pending matter.

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