Resident faces deportation

Local man who runs food pantry in Costa Mesa may be sent back to Mexico for misdemeanor convictions in 1996.He’s a modern-day savior to the hundreds of poor residents living in run-down motels on Costa Mesa’s Westside. More than a source of food and clothing, Luis Armendariz is a symbol of hope to those still caught in the web of drugs and prostitution -- a man who escaped through prayer and service.

But nearly a decade ago, this Huntington Beach resident made mistakes that now might send him back to Mexico -- an exodus he’s not prepared to make.

“I can go anywhere. I’m a man of Christ,” he said from the small food pantry he operates for the Vineyard Christian Center in Costa Mesa. “But I’m worried about my children. Who will take care of them?”

Armendariz is facing deportation for crimes he committed in 1996, crimes that involve drug use and sex.

At the time, he had hit rock bottom. Once a successful businessman with a big house, a big family and plenty of food on the table, he found himself addicted to crack cocaine and living day-to-day in hotels with pimps, prostitutes and other unsavory characters.

“That wasn’t living, it was dying,” he said. “Every day I was praying for God to deliver me from this.”

Armendariz’s downward spiral was brought on by his wife’s death after a two-year battle with cancer. She was only 37. The pair had two children together, Avanti, now 14, and Melissa, 15. Armendariz also has four grown children from a previous marriage.

After his wife’s death, Armendariz spent five months on the skids, followed by another three months in jail. When he emerged from incarceration, Armendariz said he was a changed man. He sold off his businesses and launched a volunteer food pantry at Vineyard Christian, providing patrons with a mix of ministry and service rare on the Westside.

“I think the most important thing is that I bring prayers for them,” he said. “That is the great thing about Christians -- we can pray anywhere. Prayer is the strongest thing in the universe. It is through prayer that we turn our hearts to God.”

He works seven days a week at the pantry but doesn’t accept a dime from the church. His Huntington Beach home is already paid for; he and his family survive on his wife’s Social Security benefits.

His service to the community has drawn great acclamation. His pantry can boast praise from dozens of local newspapers and honors from former Congressman Chris Cox and the Newport-Mesa-Irvine Interfaith Council.

But Armendariz has also drawn the attention of U.S. Immigration officials. According to the federal 1996 Immigration Act, created in the aftermath of the first World Trade Tower attacks, alien-residents like Armendariz can be stripped of their green cards if they are convicted of certain crimes.

In 1998, two years after Armendariz pleaded guilty to seven misdemeanors, including one count of having sexual contact with a minor, he was picked up by immigration officials and put through deportation hearings.

Armendariz lost his trial, then his early appeals, and eventually a final appeal to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals was denied. In the last case, Armendariz said his attorney never showed up to court; he was swindled by a notorio, a slang term for someone who falsely claims to have a law license.

Armendariz’s new attorney, Faith Nouri, said she is now attempting to secure a pardon from Gov. Schwarzenegger -- a difficult feat, but it is his only hope.

“We’re asking the governor to consider it because if he is not a good candidate, then who is?” she said.

In the meantime, Armendariz is at the mercy of immigration officials, who will decide if he should be allowed to wait in the United States for a response from the governor. He could be deported back to Mexico any day now.

“We’re just waiting day to day, praying and trying to be strong,” he said. “I’m very nervous, but there is little I can do. It’s in God’s hands.”