Lawmakers rally behind immigrant living in NYC church

Clutching her three children, Amanda Morales-Guerra, 33, on Monday listened to immigration advocates who continued to plead her case of not being sent back to Guatemala.

Morales-Guerra is an undocumented immigrant holed up inside Holyrood Church in Washington Heights to avoid deportation.

Her community support continues to grow. At a rally Monday afternoon, Rep. Adriano Espaillat was among those who delivered a stay of deportation request to Immigration and Customs Enforcement offices in Lower Manhattan. He called Morales-Guerra's situation a "landmark case" because she is an undocumented woman to take up sanctuary in a church in New York.

Morales-Guerra fled to the United States in 2004 to escape the violence in her home country, she said.  Her children were born here, making them U.S. citizens.

Morales-Guerra's supporters said that if their efforts fall short with ICE officials they will turn their attention to state and local officials challenging them to put their money where their mouth is with regards to New York being a true sanctuary city.