The man who was shot by a federal immigration agent as he fled an attempted arrest in Antioch earlier this month was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents Tuesday afternoon.
The man, Jose Fernando Andrade-Sanchez, was taken into custody in the parking lot of Ozment Law, the immigration law firm of the late Elliott Ozment. Ozment, who died in October of last year, was a longtime champion of immigrant rights.
In court documents that were unsealed after Andrade-Sanchez's arrest, federal prosecutors say he "has been found in and removed from the United States on four prior occasions." Andrade-Sanchez pleaded guilty to a domestic assault charge in Nashville in 2009, according to the court documents. In 2013, he was charged with misdemeanor criminal impersonation after "falsely identifying himself as 'Erik Velazquez' to a Metro Nashville Police Officer during a traffic stop," prosecutors say. He pleaded guilty to that charge as well. Now, he is charged with illegal re-entry.
ICE agents attempted to arrest Andrade-Sanchez earlier this month in the parking lot of an Antioch Food Lion. He refused to get out of the box truck he was seated in and started to drive away when one of the agents fired at him, striking him once. Andrade-Sanchez was later released from the hospital and was not taken into custody. His attorney said he was unarmed at the time of the incident, adding that ICE agents "did not have a warrant for his arrest, and the man was exercising his right to leave the scene."
Update (5:45 p.m.): A statement from Aaron Dendy, an attorney at Ozment Law, who is representing Andrade-Sanchez:
Today’s arrest is an unprecedented betrayal of the values of due process and legal representation. Nashvillians facing deportation already face significant challenges fighting their cases and receiving their fair day in court. Immigration agents’ decision to make a violent, aggressive arrest on a law firm’s private property sends a chilling message that even those with valid claims to adjusting their status and continuing their lives in this country are at risk. In the 20-year history of our law firm, we have never had an enforcement operation conducted on our property, and we will exercise all legal rights available to ensure that it never happens again.Our country’s immigration laws are being wielded against immigrant families with shocking cruelty. When people are afraid to go to court, check in with probation officers, or seek legal representation, all of our communities suffer. Though not without flaws, our judicial system should be open and accessible to all communities to ensure justice is truly served.
