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Congressman says midshipman’s mom deported back to Mexico - KLBK | KAMC | EverythingLubbock.com
Maria Rocha-Martinez, the mother of a first-year Naval Academy midshipman from Texas, was deported to Mexico on Wednesday night after being held at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Dilley, Texas, since late last month. U.S.
U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, announced the deportation Thursday in a post on X, saying Rocha-Martinez was in the process of obtaining a green card at the time she was detained. Her son, David Garcia, is a first-year midshipman at the U.S. Naval Academy. Castro wrote that she "was doing everything the right way."
For people in Lubbock and across West Texas who know military families personally, this one hits differently. Garcia is actively serving the country, and his mother was removed the same week. Castro's statement said she "raised a bright young man with good character who is serving our nation" and argued she should not have been deported.
The case puts a human face on a national immigration debate that often gets reduced to statistics. A sitting congressman went public specifically because the midshipman's military service made the circumstances stand out, and the story spread quickly after his post Thursday.
The United States currently has roughly 4,500 active midshipmen enrolled at the Naval Academy in Annapolis.
Common questions
Who is Maria Rocha-Martinez and why was she deported?
- Maria Rocha-Martinez is the mother of David Garcia, a first-year U.S. Naval Academy midshipman from Texas. She was deported to Mexico after being held at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas. Rep. Joaquin Castro said she was in the process of obtaining a green card when she was detained.
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