San Francisco, CA -- Daniel Maher, Recycling Director at the Ecology Center of Berkeley, is in imminent threat of deportation by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Advocates are coming together to stop Daniel's unjust deportation. Daniel came to the United States from Macau, a region in China, when he was two years old as a permanent resident. As a twenty-year-old, Daniel was talked into taking part in robbing a store with a group of other boys. He was arrested immediately afterwards and served seven years in prison. ICE detained him for an additional year after he served his sentence but the Chinese government refused to accept him for deportation. Immigration advocates have seen a spike in ICE raids at homes of Chinese immigrants. These raids are inhumane as illustrated by Daniel's case. 

Daniel's deportation officer recommended that he be released from detention, understanding that his conviction did not define him. He wrote:
 

"It [is] hard to see why he committed the robbery other than being very young and influenced by his peers....He is bright and seems committed to living a legitimate and law-abiding life if released. Mr. Maher should be considered for release...."
 

In the past decade and half since being released, Daniel has committed himself to the environment by sorting recycling, driving recycling trucks, and engaging in education on recycling. For the last ten years, Daniel has worked at the Ecology Center, a Berkeley, California nonprofit where he directs the recycling program and manages the community's curbside recycling program. 

"While ICE claims deportations improve public safety, we see time and time again that ICE harms our communities and makes us less safe by arresting people like Daniel." states Anoop Prasad, Senior Staff Attorney at Asian Law Caucus. 
 
Annette Wong, Immigrant Rights Program Manager at Chinese for Affirmative Action, says, "Daniel's story is another example of how our immigration system is failing us, and continuing to tear famillies apart". 
 

Due to the efforts of the Bay Area immigrant and environmental rights groups*, the petition campaign for Mr. Maher has received an outpouring of support from community members across the country, with advocates reporting over 1,000 signatures on one petition. ICE wants us to believe that the people they arrest and deport pose a threat to public safety. They claim that anyone with a felony conviction is dangerous, but we all know that this is not true. We all make mistakes but are also more than the sum of those mistakes.

Debbie Beyea, Deputy Director of the Ecology Center, says, "Daniel has spent the past decade and a half building a positive life for himself.  He contributes in the best ways to our organization and society as whole by working hard, helping others, and managing an operation that helps keep our environment cleaner."
  

*Groups include Advancing Justice - Asian Law Caucus, Asian Pacific Environmental Network, Asian Prisoner Support Committee, Chinese for Affirmative Action, Chinese Progressive Association, and Ecology Center.