Undocumented Ohio father Jesús Lara López deported to Mexico

Jesús Lara López, the father of four U.S.-born children aged six through 13 whose case garnered national attention in recent weeks, was deported early Tuesday to Mexico.

At Cleveland's Hopkins International Airport, he was accompanied by his family, church leaders as well as a number of immigration advocates who had pushed to halt his deportation.

“I tried to do as much as I could to get a different result, because this family deserves it,” said Lynn Tramonte, the deputy director of America's Voice and an Ohio advocate who has closely followed Lara López's case. “They don’t deserve what happened. They are a wonderful family,” she told Univision.

Tramonte says Lara López's case represents how immigration priorities have changed under President Trump.

While the number of detentions of undocumented immigrants rose during President Donald Trump's first 100 days in office, deportations actually fell, according to official government data requested by Univision.

Lara López, 37, lived in the U.S. since 2001, working various jobs. He was put on the Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE’s) radar through a police tip in 2008, but was allowed to stay and work in the country.

At his routine ICE appointment in March, Lara López was told his time was up and that he needed to return to Mexico. He was fitted with an electronic ankle monitor.

"Unfortunately it's become a pretty common pattern all across country," Tramonte said.

Over the past month, activists and community members have pleaded with ICE to let Lara López stay with his family. Nearly 35,000 people signed a petition asking for a stay of his deportation.

In a brief statement sent to Univision News, ICE Ohio spokesman Khaalid Walls did not detail the reasons for prioritizing Lara López’s deportation.

"An immigration judge ordered his deportation in 2011. In an act of discretion, the agency has allowed him to remain free of custody to finalize his departure plans," the spokesman wrote.

His lawyer, David Leopold, has tried to show ICE that Lara López is not a public threat or a burden on the government.

“Are we safer this morning because another American family has been destroyed?” Leopold said to Univision. “Jesus Lara is the embodiment of what we want immigrants to be. He’s worked hard all his life, paid his taxes, played by the rules, built a beautiful family.”

“We have have a president saying he’s deporting ‘bad hombres,’ and that’s a lie,” he added. “This is wrong. People must wake up.”

Univision reporter Pedro Ultreras is with Lara López as he flies to Mexico.