In a significant development, four children from Portland have been released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) after spending two weeks in custody. Their parents, Kenia Jackeline “Jackie” Merlos and Carlos, however, continue to be detained.
The family was initially apprehended at Peace Arch State Park, close to the U.S.-Canada border on June 28, while visiting family members. Merlos was accompanied by her U.S.-born children, and her husband was detained a few days later.
The situation escalated when a family friend, Mimi Lettunich, received a call informing her about the children’s intended deportation. Lettunich reported that the children had been issued new passports and were seemingly preparing to leave the United States, saying, “The government — our government — got them passports on Friday.” She is now caring for the children in Portland.
The spokesperson for CBP, Jason Givens, commented that he cannot discuss specific circumstances due to privacy regulations that restrict the release of travel information regarding U.S. citizens.
This incident marks the second known case of a family with children being held at a border patrol station in Washington, which is not established for long-term detention.
On Monday, a U.S. District Court Judge of Western Washington, Tana Lin, ordered immigration authorities to hold off on any actions against the family while she examines the case further. The family’s attorneys filed for an emergency ruling, noting that Merlos had not had access to legal representation since being taken into custody on June 28.
Judge Lin’s ruling highlighted that the Merlos family had been subjected to “serial re-location and denied contact” with their attorneys. The family’s presence at the Ferndale, Washington, facility was only confirmed after a visit by U.S. Rep. Maxine Dexter, D-Oregon, who was allowed to see them but not communicate with them.
As of Tuesday, there had been no filings from the federal government’s attorneys in response to Lin’s order, which calls for a reply by the week’s end.
Jill Nedved, an immigration attorney representing the family, indicated that the visit to the Washington state park was intended so Merlos could take her mother, who is visiting from Honduras on a visa, to meet her sister in Canada.
Givens stated that Merlos faced allegations of “attempting to smuggle illegal aliens into the U.S.” However, according to Nedved, as of Friday, no formal charges had been filed against Merlos.
The couple remains detained at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, Washington, according to records. While the situation is ongoing, Dexter and U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon, have expressed their relief over the judge’s order, emphasizing in a statement, “Our constituents, including four U.S. citizen children, were detained without due process by their own government. This emergency ruling is a legal lifeline to provide critical protection to the Merlos family.”
image source from：opb
