Edith Espinal, who is living in sanctuary in a Columbus church, is among undocumented immigrants nationwide who received letters this week from the Trump administration saying they are being fined for failing to leave the country when ordered deported.

Espinal, 42, a mother of three who has sought sanctuary in Columbus Mennonite Church since October 2017, was ordered to leave the country in September 2017 by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Instead, she went into the North Side church to avoid being deported to her native country of Mexico. She's been looking for legal ways to stay in the country since.

She and her attorney received a letter saying she owes $497,777 for failing to leave the country.

The government is fining Espinal under a little-used section of the Immigration and Nationality Act, enacted in 1952, said Espinal's attorney, Lizbeth Mateo.

Mateo said she's heard of about nine other immigrants across the country — all in sanctuary in churches — who have received notices of fines. She said they have ranged in amounts from $300,000 to $500,000.

"It's a tactic by the administration, that no one has ever used, to intimidate sanctuary leaders who are outspoken," Mateo said. "Edith has been very outspoken about her case, about her fight to stay with her family."

Noel Andersen, who tracks sanctuary cases with Church World Service in Washington, said the organization is aware of 44 people living in sanctuary across the country.

"We stand opposed to laws that penalize immigrants who are already facing the brunt of President Trump’s anti-immigrant agenda," Andersen said in an email. "ICE is clearly choosing to implement these policies in a manner that attempts to intimidate activists and silence people of conscience."

>> Read more: For the first time in Ohio, woman leaves church sanctuary a legal resident

Mateo, an immigrant rights activist and lawyer based in California, is still pursuing Espinal's legal case, with an appeal currently before the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati. She said there are valid ways for Espinal to stay in the country, but they need more time to fight her case.

Federal immigration officials typically stay away from going into churches, along with other designated "sensitive locations" such as schools and hospitals, when carrying out enforcement actions. But Mateo fears federal immigration officials may not continue to do so in light of the new tactic by the Trump administration.

The notice, dated June 25, comes on the heels of Trump tweeting in mid-June about ICE stepping up enforcement involving immigrants who entered the country via the U.S.-Mexico border.

>> Read more: Columbus' sanctuary churches say they have long history of social justice, serving others

"The people that Ice will apprehend have already been ordered to be deported. This means that they have run from the law and run from the courts," Trump wrote in the tweet. "These are people that are supposed to go back to their home country. They broke the law by coming into the country, & now by staying."

U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, released a statement on Wednesday about Espinal.

"President Trump promised to go after violent criminals, not people who are working, paying taxes and contributing to their communities," Brown said. "With a crisis at our border, it’s shameful for the Trump Administration to be wasting time and resources intimidating a mother in a church."

Espinal and faith leaders hosted a press conference at the Mennonite church where she's staying on Wednesday afternoon.

They called the fine "immoral" and said that Espinal has lived in sanctuary longer than anyone else in Ohio.

“This letter is a challenge for all of us here in Columbus. I think this made us stronger to keep fighting," Espinal said in a statement released after the event.

Faith leaders and advocates called for donations, volunteers and support from the city.

The Rev. Dan Clark, with Faith in Public Life Ohio, called on elected officials to help.

“I call on elected officials on both sides of the aisle to declare a year of Jubilee and forgive the debts of the failed policies that divide us and brutalize families," Clark said in a statement. "I call for our public servants to instead serve the public and heal the soul of America by investing in our shared future. Start by letting Edith stay here at home in Columbus with her family.”

The Immigration and Nationality Act allows ICE to fine "aliens" who have been ordered removed and failed to leave. Khaalid Walls, a regional spokesman in the Detroit ICE office, said current federal regulations set the financial penalty for not leaving the country at $3,000.

Under the act, the civil penalty for "willfully refusing to depart the United States" is no more than $500 a day, which has been adjusted to $799 per day due to inflation, Walls said.

"ICE is committed to using various enforcement methods — including arrest, detention, technological monitoring, and financial penalties — to enforce U.S. immigration law and maintain the integrity of legal orders issued by judges," Walls said.

He said people have 30 days to respond to the notice of the fine.

As for how Espinal and Mateo will respond, the attorney said her first response was to laugh because the amount and the demand seem outrageous. Mateo is hoping Ohio elected officials will respond and do more to help her client, who did not return a call for comment Tuesday afternoon.

"I've never seen anything like this," Mateo said.

dking@dispatch.com

@DanaeKing