This story was originally published on my northwest website
Two family members and a wrongfully detained asylum seeker, all living in Spokane at the time of their detention, have been released by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
A Spokane father and his 10-year-old daughter were released from a Texas detention center on Saturday, KHQ reported, citing a Facebook post from Latinos En Spokane, a nonprofit organization dedicated to empowering Spokane’s Latino population.
“Cara and her dad are coming home!!!” wrote the Spokane Latina.
Arnoldo Caal and his daughter Karla Baltazar, who are from Guatemala, were detained by ICE in January, according to KHQ. They were interned in Spokane and lived there for several years.
Baltazar is an elementary school student in the Spokane Public School District. The district told KHQ the family has no criminal history.
Community members protested the family’s detention, echoing demonstrations last summer when another immigrant was detained in Spokane.
Immigrants return to Spokane after judge rules detention illegal
Joswar Rodriguez Torres, a 29-year-old Venezuelan immigrant who was detained in June, was released back to Spokane after a judge ruled the incarceration was illegal. seattle times reported on Monday.
Rodriguez Torres was detained during a scheduled check-in at the Spokane ICE facility.
U.S. District Judge James Robart ruled that the federal government unlawfully detained Rodriguez-Torres and denied him his right to due process.
Rodriguez Torres is in the country legally through the Venezuelan Humanitarian Parole Program, which allows immigrants facing persecution to live and work in the United States while on parole. Seattle Times.
The media pointed out that Rodriguez Torres has no criminal record in the United States and all his court documents were submitted on time. Rodriguez-Torres is appealing his asylum application, but the government revoked his parole without explanation, court records show.
Robart said the Department of Homeland Security’s decision to detain him was an “abuse” of discretion.
“All persons, regardless of their immigration status, are entitled to due process under the Fifth Amendment,” Robart reportedly wrote. seattle times.
Rodriguez-Torres is currently living with a friend while awaiting another court hearing. However, former Spokane City Council President Ben Stuckart told him that immigration courts are currently too supportive and that it could be two years before the next hearing. seattle times.