A federal judge issued a temporary stay of deportation Wednesday for a Norwalk mom who defied immigration officials when they ordered her to return to her native Guatemala.

Nury Chavarria, 43, has been living in the United States for 24 years, where she's raised four children. She was initially denied asylum when she came to the United States, but she stayed anyway and has been checking in annually with immigration authorities since 2011.

At last month's check-in, she was told to leave the country in five weeks and placed in a monitoring bracelet.

Rather than leaving as scheduled last week, she took a detour and found sanctuary at a New Haven church, where she's spent the last week living.

Gov. Dannel Malloy and Connecticut's two senators, who had previously visited the church and voiced support of Chavarria, issued statements praising the stay. It allows Chavarria to stay in Connecticut at least temporarily while the courts review her case.