Hipolito Galan Mancillas is a small business owner who came to Waco from Zacatecas, Mexico in 1997. He is a father of four, and grandfather to three young grandchildren.
Mancillas was one of the thousands arrested as part of the dramatic increase in the repression of undocumented people living in the U.S.
For information on his story, Liberation turned to Mancillas’s daughter, Mely Galan, a student and DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) recipient.
In the month’s leading up to her father’s arrest, Mely and her family noticed the police presence in their neighborhood becoming increasingly intimidating. “We were living in fear,” she told Liberation News, adding that her family conducted drills on what to do in case one of them didn’t come home on time. Their fears were realized last summer when Hipolito Mancillas didn’t arrive home by the time he had told his family he would be back.
Liberation: What happened on August 11th, 2017?
Mely Galan: My dad was supposed to be home by 8 PM. We were expecting him, and I knew he was going to be bringing some birthday presents for me. My mom called him, and my dad told her he was being followed by a police car. My mom came to my house, and my dad was on speaker when he was pulled over. I quickly drove to his location, a short distance from my house.
Liberation: What did you encounter when you arrived on the scene?
MG: There were several police officers. I told them who I was, and informed them that my dad’s communication in English is limited. They told me where to stop, and ordered me to remain in my car. I was never allowed to go to him.
Liberation: What crime did the police indicate they suspected your father of?
MG: Driving under the influence, but this would not have been plausible because he was coming directly from shopping after working all day. They did not issue a Breathalyzer test, but they did issue a field sobriety test. My dad told them a pre-existing injury prevented him from standing on one leg, but they made him do it anyway.
Liberation: What happened after they had given him the test?
MG: He was put into car. They searched his car, saying that they didn’t need a warrant. My family contacted a lawyer, and once my dad had been booked, he spent two weeks in a holding cell. He was then taken to South Texas Detention Facility.[South Texas Detention Facility — privately held prison operated under contract with ICE located in Pearsall, TX, several hours away from Mancillas’s home]
Liberation: When was your father released? And what developments have there been since that time?
MG: Sept. 9th, 2017. My dad has made preparations for the worst case scenario, which would be his removal. He has formally resigned from his company, assigning all his property to my brother and to me. He and my mother are also making me guardian of my younger brothers since I am the oldest.
We also had a hearing on the 8th of January, with a bittersweet result. We turned in his Application for Cancellation of Removal to the court, but that was literally it. They didn’t sign the application because, they said, “a lot can change in a year.” Our next court date is April of 2019. Although it’s another promised year with our father, it’s really frustrating that we have to wait so long.
Liberation: What can sympathetic readers do to help your family?
MG: We are still trying to collect signatures and continue to raise funds for his application and legal fees at this site.
