A federal lawsuit accuses U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement of violating the agency’s own directives by detaining and then deporting two non-citizen parents alongside their children, including a 4-year-old with stage 4 kidney cancer.
The plaintiffs filed the suit on Thursday in the Middle District of Louisiana, using the pseudonyms Julia and Rosario for their protection. U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem, ICE Acting Director Todd Lyons, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi and multiple ICE officers are some of the defendants named in the complaint.
Julia and Rosario resided in Louisiana before their respective deportations to Honduras, according to the lawsuit. Julia, 30, is a Honduran citizen and mother to two daughters, Jade and Janelle. Rosario, 25, is also a Honduran citizen with two children, Ruby and Romeo, the latter of whom suffers from stage 4 kidney cancer.
Jade, Ruby and Romeo are all U.S. citizens, the lawsuit notes, while Janelle is a non-U.S. citizen.
The complaint alleges that Julia and Rosario attended in April what they believed was a regularly scheduled check-in with ICE. During the appointment, the agency arrested, detained and then deported the mothers to Honduras along with their children.
The plaintiffs accuse ICE of violating Directive 11064.3, a policy in effect until July 1, that says detained parents must have the opportunity to make custody arrangements for their children before their deportation.
“In violation of the government’s own directive, Julia and Rosario were never given a choice as to whether their children should be deported with them and were prohibited from contacting their counsel or having meaningful contact with their families to arrange for the care of their children,” the lawsuit stated.
“Instead, they were held effectively incommunicado with their children and illegally deported without even a semblance of due process,” the document continues.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not immediately respond to The Christian Post’s request for comment.
Rosario was reportedly denied the right to coordinate care for Romeo, who requires ongoing treatment for his cancer. The child was diagnosed with kidney cancer at the age of 2, which had spread to his lungs, as the lawsuit notes.
Romeo was receiving what the complaint described as “regular and critical life-saving cancer treatment” at Manning Family Children’s Hospital in New Orleans before his deportation. The complaint asserts that ICE’s “unlawful conduct” deprived the child of “specialized” and “medically necessary care,” endangering his health.
One consequence of Rosario not having the opportunity to make arrangements for Romeo’s care is that the child will have to travel back and forth between the United States and Honduras to continue his cancer treatment.
Romeo’s mother worries that the constant travel will pose “significant physical and psychological burdens on him and his family.” The mother also has “very limited financial resources,” the complaint says, and has already had to pay for flights to the U.S. to allow Romeo to return for medical treatment.
Rosario is also concerned for the safety of her children, according to the complaint, as Ruby and Romeo are not citizens of Honduras. Without additional authorization from the Honduran government, the suit notes, Ruby and Romeo can only remain in Honduras for 90 days.
“By its conduct, including its mistreatment of these children, their parents, and their siblings, ICE violated its own regulations and federal law,” the complaint states. “This lawsuit seeks to remedy the ongoing and irreparable harms that the government has inflicted upon these families and allow them to return home.”
The 39-page complaint seeks a jury trial for the plaintiffs, as well as an order for ICE to return Julia and Rosario to the U.S. with their families and abide by the agency’s Directive 11064.3. Regarding the defendants named in the suit, the complaint asks that they be held “jointly and severally liable for general, special, and punitive damages,” with the amount to be determined at trial.
“Defendants’ actions caused, are causing, and, if not remedied, will continue to cause Plaintiffs irreparable injury in the form of deprivation of their fundamental constitutional rights as well as physical and emotional distress,” the lawsuit asserts.
Samantha Kamman is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: samantha.kamman@christianpost.com. Follow her on Twitter: @Samantha_Kamman
