A San Jose family, whose primary breadwinner is in jail facing deportation, is considering a move not south to Mexico, but rather north to Canada.  

KRON4 has been following the story of Fernando Carillo and his family for months.

They await a court ruling that, for better or worse, will chart their future course.

KRON4 caught up with Lourdes Barraza helping her daughter with homework as another day passes while her husband Carillo is in jail in Richmond while Judge Joseph Park decides whether to deport him.

“We’re just focused on Judge Park to make the right decision,” Barraza said. “We have a lot of support in the community. Fernando is not a threat to society, and he needs to be home with his family.”

If the judge rules against them, Lourdes and her three daughters, all of whom are American citizens, are setting their sights on a new life in Canada.

“If he is removed to Mexico, we could not live there safely, so the only option is Canada,” Barraza said. “They speak English there, which would be best for our daughters, and in terms of finding work, Canada is the only option.”

Detained by ICE agents after leaving his daughter’s daycare center in October, Carillo has been living illegally in the U.S. For 15 years. 

ICE says Carillo has already been deported three times since 2003.

Lourdes says the real problem is the lack of a clear path to citizenship for people like her husband.

“If he could, he would stand in line for days for the opportunity, but there is too much red tape,” Lourdes said. “It’s why there are so many others who have not had the opportunity to get documented.”

Working a graveyard shift now and struggling to make end’s meet without Fernando’s cable TV installer paycheck, Lourdes says their three children miss their father.

“Our youngest, who is 4, begs me not to take her to the daycare center where ICE detained her dad,” Barraza said. “She feels responsible for that and that is something a 4-year-old should not have in her mind.”

His crimes are said to include trying to enter the U.S. with a fake I.D, overstaying a visa, and drunk driving, but supporters say Carillo is no threat to national security.

They want the judge to grant what’s called a withholding of removal, which would allow Carillo to appeal and apply for a work permit and stay with his family.

“.We have contributed to this economy, we have made a home for ourselves here, he supported me while I went to school, we’re trying to do the same for our children,” Barraza said. “We’ve worked really hard to be where we are now.”

And so the question for Lourdes and Fernando and their kids is what happens if he is deported and Canada, already swamped with immigrants seeking asylum, slams the door?

“I don’t know, then what? Barraza said. “Then, what do four American citizens do in the land of…who knows where? That is my greatest fear right now.”

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