DETROIT-A local man has been released from immigration detention after a federal judge ruled that his 2-month imprisonment was both illegal and immoral.
Mr. Juan Lopez-Campos, a 46-year-old male who has been living in the U.S. for decades as a Mexican national with no criminal record, was taken into custody after being pulled over for a routine traffic stop in Romulus back in June. The Romulus Police Department contacted U.S. Customs and Border Protection who then transferred Mr. Lopez-Campos to immigration detention.
Attorney Shahad Atiya of Atiya Law is Mr. Lopez-Campos’ immigration lawyer, and cooperating counsel with the ACLU of Michigan. Together they sued the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Department of Justice (DOJ) for detaining Mr. Lopez-Campos without the opportunity for a bond hearing, undoing a policy of over 3 decades.
Mr. Lopez-Campos, who has five children that are U.S. citizens, was impacted by an aggressive Trump position announced on July 8 that uses mandatory detention framework, regardless of the circumstances.
The petition, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, asserted that Lopez-Campos is illegally being denied his right to a bond hearing in connection with the Trump policy.
It also highlighted that Mr. Lopez-Campos is a Good Samaritan who has maintained steady employment and has consistently given back to the local community. He routinely volunteered at local churches and distributed food to those in need. He is the primary caregiver of his five children, who stressed that he be given a timely chance to appear in front of an immigration judge.
On Friday, August 29, U.S. District Judge Brandy McMillion ruled that Lopez-Campos must be given an opportunity to appear before an immigration judge in order to seek release from detention, or be released within 7 days.
In her ruling, Judge McMillion noted that mandatory detention is not only wrong, but fundamentally unfair.
On Wednesday, September 3, following the judge’s ruling, Mr. Lopez-Campos was finally released from the Monroe County Jail Facility where he was held by ICE, without a bond hearing.
“We are very pleased that Mr. Lopez Campos has rejoined his family,” said Attorney Shahad Atiya. “For him and for so many others, the fight does not end here. We are prepared to continue to help individuals uphold the laws of this country no matter who you are and what nationalities you carry.”
Mr. Lopez-Campos stated that he is delighted to return to his family.
“I am happy to finally be with my family with the help of my legal team. I hope to continue to fight my case,” Mr. Lopez-Campos stated.
The ACLU criticized the July 8 Trump administration position, which mandates all undocumented immigrants who entered the U.S. without inspection and now detained by ICE, be placed in mandatory detention while their case goes through immigration court.
“Despite a law providing for bond hearings in immigration court, the directive attempts to reverse decades of government policy and practice,” said the ACLU of Michigan. “Left unchallenged, implementation of that directive threatens to put hundreds or even thousands of Michigan residents in mandatory immigration detention with no access to judicial review.”
While it was good news for Mr. Lopez-Campos, there are still thousands of other immigrants in detention who are in a comparable situation. In most cases, seeing an immigration judge and going through the immigration process could take months or even years as the court system tends to get backed up, which could keep people detained for an unspecified period of time.
The latest figures show that there are over 59,000 individuals captured by ICE that are being held in detention centers and that at least 70% of them have no criminal conviction. To keep up with demand, a new jail in Michigan was opened this summer to house the Michigan residents detained by ICE.
If you or a family member need information regarding a specific case or the assistance of experienced attorneys fighting for people like you every day, call our 24/7 English-Spanish line at 248.951.2450 or reach out to us at Atiya Law.