AJC

Trial for Kennesaw State student begins today

Testimony is expected to begin Thursday afternoon for Jessica Colotl, the Kennesaw State University student whose traffic case sparked a statewide illegal immigration debate.

After Judge Kathryn Tanksley denied a motion to dismiss, jury selection began for the trial on traffic charges of Jessica Colotl, whose arrest and near-deportation prompted a controversy over illegal immigrants attending public colleges in Georgia.

Trial photos KSU student in immigration battle heads to traffic court

Attorneys for Colotl and the Cobb County Solicitor’s Office struck a jury earlier in the day, after meeting privately in the judge’s chambers and deciding to move forward with a trial on the misdemeanor traffic case.

Jerome Lee, Colotl’s attorney, said his client should be found not guilty of driving without a license because she recently obtained a learner’s permit.

Colotl, dressed stylishly in pencil-thin jeans, black high heels and a black pea coat, sat small and silent beside her lawyer while in court. After the hearing, she talked about her situation.

The 22-year-old Kennesaw State University student said that she considers herself and others like her to be “Americans without papers.” Colotl is an illegal immigrant whose parents brought her into the country as a child.

“I have grown up in this country and I’ve adopted all the American values,” Colotl said. “I think I have a right to stay here.”

D.A King, an active proponent of illegal immigration enforcement, attended the hearing. He said he felt sorry for Jessica, but she should not have the right to be in the country, nor to drive.

“If she has been issued a learning permit, that is in error,” King said. “They deferred her deportation, but she still is here illegally.”

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