A South Florida woman, who has lived in the U.S. for two decades, is now facing a crushing $1.8 million fine from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for failing to leave the country after being ordered to do so nearly 20 years ago.
Maria, 41, originally from Honduras, entered the U.S. illegally in 2005 and was ordered to leave after missing a scheduled immigration hearing. Instead, she stayed and raised her children in Miami-Dade.
Then, on May 9, everything changed.
She received a letter from ICE informing her that she owed $500 for every day she remained in the country since 2005, totaling $1,821,350. She was given just 30 days to pay.
“Ever since that day I live with anxiety,” she told CBS News Miami. “I can’t sleep… I don’t feel. I don’t want to go back.”
Maria pleaded to stay in the U.S. for the sake of her children. “It would be extremely painful to be separated from my children, this is their country, this is all they know. Please have mercy. I want to stay with them.”
She says she never received notice of the hearing she missed. “I told the immigration officer I didn’t have any family in this country or a specific place to stay. I never received any document and they did not know where I was going to be.”
Her attorney, Michelle C. Sanchez, says the massive fine is outrageous. “Absolutely nuts,” she called it.
“They’re supposed to say on [here] the date that she was advised and this is blank because they never advised her of the penalties. So that’s going to be my argument,” Sanchez explained while holding the ICE notice.
Sanchez also warned the consequences of deportation would go far beyond Maria. “Her children would suffer extreme and exceptionally unusual hardships” if she’s forced to leave.
This case comes as the Trump administration pushes forward with its most aggressive immigration enforcement campaign yet, promising mass deportations nationwide.
