KSU Student Jessica Colotl Speaks After Jail Release
The above video was from a May 14, 2010 news conference where Colotl spoke with supporters. For more information, see this article: KSU Student Jessica Colotl Speaks After Jail Release:
A Kennesaw State University student whom authorities said was in the U.S. illegally turned herself in to police on Friday morning, and was later released. Jessica Colotl spoke Friday about her situation at a press conference held by her attorneys and her supporters.
A warrant was issued Thursday for 21-year-old Jessica Colotl. She turned herself in Friday morning around 9 a.m., and was released from jail on $2,500 bond just before noon.
Colotl spoke at a news conference Friday afternoon, just hours after she turned herself in to Cobb County deputies. Also in attendance at the news conference were many organizations that support her, including Georgia Latino Alliance for Human Rights (GLAHR), the Southern Poverty Law Center, ACLU Georgia, and the Georgia Association of Latino Elected Officials.
An emotional Colotl said sheâs looking forward to graduation. She said she doesnât have a criminal record, and she never thought she would be âcaught up in this messed up system,â as she put it.
Jessica Colotl, who is from Mexico, was originally arrested in March for driving without a license. She was pulled over by KSU campus police, and after her arrest she was turned over to immigration authorities.
She was nearly deported, but school officials intervened and Colotl was granted a one-year deferment to finish college before she would have to leave the country. She was released from immigration detention just last week.
But now, Cobb County Sheriff Neil Warren says she gave false information about where she lived when she was arrested in March.
According to the sheriff, Colotl allegedly claimed she lived at a Duluth apartment complex when she didnât. Sheâs accused of making false statements during her previous arrest. Sheriff Warren says situations like this make it difficult for his deputies to do their jobs, but activists accuse him of being vindictive.
Colotl was brought to the U.S. by her mother when she was 10. She graduated from a Georgia high school, and she was one semester short of finishing her college degree when she was stopped on campus and arrested.
Her supporters called for a resolution to the dispute over Colotlâs immigration status. They held fliers from GLAHR that read, âEducation, Not Deportation,â for Colotl.