It's on: Mom of 3 refuses to show up for deportation; ICE now says her case 'under review'

A lot has happened since the piece we ran yesterday on Cile Precetaj, which brought a huge response from readers of this site, as well as from those who read the coverage in other media.

Precetaj, who fled to this country since 2000 - and got married and had three kids all while trying unsuccessfully to obtain legal status - was told on Monday by Obama's ICE that she had 24 hours to report to Detroit Metro Airport for deportation back to Albania. Photos of a sobbing Precetaj and her three sobbing children told the story, as the family's financial situation was such that she had no choice but to take the children with her and leave her husband behind. The children would be forced to leave the Detroit suburb that had always been their home and live in a remote village in Albania. Reports circulated about the strange behavior of the courts and the ICE, including a comment from a judge that asylum was not meant for "attractive young women." But late in the day, the story took another turn as Precetaj announced that she had decided to review the order from ICE. She would not be hauling her children and her luggage to the terminal at Metro Airport. If they wanted to force her out, they could come and get her. All afternoon and into the evening, the family watched nervously out their front window to see if armed federal agents would show up at their door. They didn't.

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Finally, very late in the day, the ICE announced that Precetaj's case is now "under review" and thus they would not be enforcing the immediate deportation order that came down Monday with the 24-hour notice. More from the Detroit Free Press:

An elated Precetaj broke down crying at the news. “I was just hugging my kids, saying ‘thank you, thank you, thank you.’ I don’t have to be scared,” Precetaj said after learning her case was getting reviewed. The 41-year-old said her dream is to stay in the U.S. and “raise my kids in this beautiful country.” “I feel so glad, and I appreciate what they do for me right now,” she said. “Hopefully, it’s going to work for me and they’re going to keep me here.” If it doesn’t, she said, perhaps her case will help other mothers like herself and bring about immigration changes. Her story, meanwhile, has triggered an outpouring of support and grabbed national headlines after the Free Press reported her ordeal. Some supporters have started petitions to keep her in the U.S. Some are calling their U.S. representatives for help. A “Good Morning America” crew went to her home Tuesday.

Clearly the publicity this case generated was what inspired ICE to suddenly "review" the case. After 13 years of refusing Precetaj's appeals, and one day after issuing a deportation order with 24 hours' notice, the government was not confused about the position it was taking. In fact, early Tuesday, ICE had said it would be issuing a statement on her case later in the day. Then all the publicity hit, and suddenly there was no statement, and just like that a decision to review her case. This is no guarantee that she will not still be deported, but it does show that - as the boss often says - when they feel the heat they see the light. Government agencies are notorious for running roughshod over individuals just because they can, but they have a tendency to back off when the public finds out about it and the phone lines of members of Congress start melting down. Even if you are an absolutist on immigration law and believe Precetaj should be deported, you should be glad to see that public pressure does indeed make a difference. I concluded my piece yesterday by simply making the statement that there had to be a better way to resolve this situation than forcing this woman and her three American children to leave their father and live in a remote village in Albania. But the government didn't care to look for that better resolution until the public became aware of what it was doing. Now it's suddenly making an effort. See what happens when they feel the heat?