'Unconstitutional detention': ICE must 'immediately' release immigrant who was detained after calling 911 to help save someone else's life, judge says | Law & Crime A federal judge in Maine has ordered the Trump administration to "immediately" release a Chinese man who was detained by immigration agents after trying to stop someone from committing suicide.
The Trump administration moved to cancel the temporary legal status (parole) of migrants who had entered the U.S. legally through the CBP One app. Although a federal court initially blocked the mass cancellation, the Supreme Court later allowed the policy to proceed while the case continues. This family is one example of people detained during that process. This illustrates, once again, that “legality” is often used as a justification for mass deportation - even targeting people who entered the U.S. legally and are living much like any of your neighbors. For those who keep insisting that enforcement only targets “illegal” immigrants, this reality shows otherwise. This family is lucky because its members are well known in the community, but there are many other families who entered legally through the CBP One app and are now detained while waiting for deportation. Two teen brothers Joshua, Antonio Gámez-Cuéllar, in McAllen, Texas mariachi band released from ICE custody - ABC13 Houston RAYMONDVILLE, Texas -- A family whose two teen boys are in a nationally recognized mariachi band in South Texas was reunited Monday afternoon after bipartisan criticism that the Trump administration's campaign for mass deportation overreached by detaining the family. Brothers Antonio Gámez-Cuéllar, 18, and Joshua, 14, were detained along with their 12-year-old brother and their parents Feb. 25. The teenage boys were prominent members of the McAllen High School Mariachi Oro band, which has visited the White House, performed at Carnegie Hall and won eight state championships. The two younger boys and their parents were released Monday from a family detention center in Dilley, Texas, said U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, a Texas Democrat who visited them, marking his third visit to the detention center. Antonio was released on Monday by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement from a detention center in Raymondville, Texas. "They were ecstatic. They were crying. They were excited to be reunited with their son and brother, Antonio, who was being held separately in Raymondville," Castro said at a news conference in San Antonio. "But their mom kept asking, 'What did we do wrong? We followed all the rules. We went to court, we haven't done anything wrong.'" The family had been checking in regularly with immigration authorities, as instructed, when they were detained, according to a relative and a girlfriend who organized a GoFundMe account for the family. The Department of Homeland Security said the parents, Emma Guadalupe Cuellar Lopez and Luis Antonio Gamez Martinez, were arrested by immigration authorities and "chose" to bring their three children with them. The department said they entered the U.S. illegally in 2023 near Brownsville, Texas. Efrén C. Olivares, an attorney with the National Immigration Law Center representing the eldest son, Antonio, clarified that the family entered lawfully through the CBP One app, a legal pathway, in 2023. "I challenge my colleagues to work together for new enforcement policies that not only secure our border but make safer communities and that ultimately are common sense," U.S. Rep. Monica de la Cruz, a Republican congresswoman representing McAllen, in Raymondville after Antonio's release. McAllen's Republican mayor, Javier Villalobos, said he supported the family and said he continues to advocate for "responsible pathways for law abiding individuals who want to contribute to our economy, support their families, and become productive neighbors in McAllen."
The federal government has traditionally had a very high conviction rate, but under this administration prosecution has increasingly been used as a weapon against Americans rather than for justice or pursuing criminals. That is why there have been zero convictions despite nearly 100 charges being filed. Americans Are Now a Target in Trump’s Immigration Crackdown - WSJ A WSJ investigation tracked the U.S. citizens caught in the crosshairs of an aggressive government campaign to detain and demonize dissenters The U.S. government says its agents are under attack. The claims reached 380 million views on X. Most of the alleged culprits in the tweets were U.S. citizens, denounced as terrorists, rioters and agitators. Yet none have been convicted at trial.
