Nan-Hui Jo is enjoying her first days of freedom since being released on bond from jail in Yolo County.
The domestic abuse survivor was convicted of child abduction charges and sentenced to time served for running off with her daughter Hwi to South Korea, she says, to escape her abusive boyfriend.
Immigration promptly rearrested her after her sentencing in April to face deportation.
The Sacramento Bee spoke to her at her new home.
“I heard she’s doing really well in school. I really want to see and talk to her, hug, kiss and hold her,” Jo said about her six-year-old daughter she has not seen in a year. “I’m really excited and kind of nervous, too, but our relationship is really strong. She really trusts me and respects me 100 percent.”
Her case has grabbed the attention of numerous domestic violence support organizations and immigration rights groups in the Asian American community.
“We are incredibly relieved that Nan Hui has finally been released and is one step closer to resolving this yearlong nightmare,” said attorney Saira Hussain of the Asian Law Caucus. “We must recognize this case within the context of the growing criminalization of survivors of domestic violence and the undocumented community.”
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