The Illegal Expulsion of US Citizen Children Further Erodes Due Process, says LatinoJustice
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 28, 2025
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The Illegal Expulsion of US Citizen Children Further Erodes Due Process, says LatinoJustice
New York, NY – According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), last week Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) removed three US citizen children from the US when their mothers, two undocumented women, were deported to Honduras after reporting at a Louisiana immigration office for a routine check-in.
A four-year-old US citizen child who is suffering from a rare cancer at Stage 4 was removed from the US, without medication or medical consultation, along with his mother and 7-year-old US citizen sister. A two-year-old US citizen child was removed with her mother and 11-year-old sibling the day before her lawyer was set to go to court to petition for what would happen to the girl, who has an assigned legal guardian ready to take her in.
The following statement can be attributed to Rex Chen, Supervising Counsel for Immigrant Rights, LatinoJustice PRLDEF:
“The illegal expulsion of US citizen children without due process is a grave constitutional violation and a dangerous precedent that threatens the rights of all citizens. If due process can be denied to children, it can be denied to any US citizen.
“Parents may determine that it is in the best interest of their children for them to remain together, even in another country, and that is not illegal. What is illegal is for ICE to ignore the Hague Convention and their own protocols by not properly securing informed consent on the wishes of both parents and denying these families the opportunity to follow through on arrangements that they deem serve the best interests of their children.
“We have seen in the past, in cases of family separation, that ICE has used documents that misrepresent what parents and family think or want for their US citizen children. ICE must provide proof that it is not misrepresenting parents' wishes. This situation highlights the importance of families being prepared, especially when facing actions that could violate the rights of U.S. citizens and their families."
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About LatinoJustice
LatinoJustice PRLDEF works to create a more just society by using and challenging the rule of law to secure transformative, equitable and accessible justice, by empowering our community and by fostering leadership through advocacy and education. For over 50 years, LatinoJustice PRLDEF has acted as an advocate against injustices throughout the country. To learn more about LatinoJustice, visit www.LatinoJustice.org