Sweet tots, crawly caterpillars, and butterfly transformations. A springtime to-do takes off once again.
A Norco family will go before immigration officials Tuesday to plead their case to stay in the United States.
Carmen Bonilla and other family members held a news conference Monday at the headquarters of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, a nonprofit organization that fights for the rights of immigrants and refugees in LA.
ICE agents raided the family's home in July looking for drug traffickers and drugs. The family claims they were kicked, beaten and scratched by the agents during the raid.
They said "shut up or we'll shoot,'' said the 46-year-old Bonilla, who said she later went to a hospital for treatment of scratches and bruises.
The family says agents did not find any drug traffickers or drugs at the home. However, ICE agents determined eight people at the home were in the country illegally.
"Four adult males were taken into custody at the scene and placed in removal proceedings. For humanitarian reasons, the remaining four individuals encountered in the home were given letters instructing them to report to ICE at a later date for processing," ICE spokeswoman Virginia Kice said in a statement.
Immigration attorney Jessica Dominguez said information obtained about the family's immigration status should not be used against them because they were not the object of the raid.
Dominguez declined to state what country Bonilla was from or reveal her immigration status.
