Via Chicago Tribune:
Instead of turning herself over to immigration officials, Francisca Lino is taking sanctuary in the same Chicago church that protected immigration activist Elvira Arellano.
Lino, 50, a Bolingbrook resident and mother of six children — five of them U.S. citizens — was scheduled to meet with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials Wednesday. Instead, she held a West Side news conference at Adalberto United Methodist Church in Humboldt Park.
“I feel sad that I had to do this and defy the law to be with my children, but we’re going to keep fighting this case,” Lino said.
The small church was filled with about 50 supporters, including Arellano, who said she would “have her back.” Several people cheered “si se puede,” or “yes we can,” as Lino addressed reporters.
Her lawyer, Chris Bergin, said he showed up to her appointment and delivered a letter to immigration officials explaining that she had decided against self-deportation.
“I made it clear that she will not be hiding from the ICE officers but that she is asking instead for protection from her God,” Bergin said.