"That's why the Trump administration is prioritizing the deportation of real threats to public safety ... like that 5-year-old boy in a bunny hat. Liam Conejo Ramos's photo went viral last month when masked ICE agents sent him and his father to a Texas detention center, though people at the scene begged them to leave the boy with his mother in Minneapolis."
"Danielle Molliver, the immigration lawyer representing Liam and his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, confirmed to the New York Times on Friday that the Department of Homeland Security is seeking to fast-track their deportation, calling the move "extraordinary" and possibly "retaliatory." The family is from Ecuador and entered the U.S. in 2024. While DHS claims Arias entered illegally, Mollivar said the family entered legally through a humanitarian program and has been following the rules as they apply for asylum."
"Liam and his father were released from a Dilley, Texas, detention center last Saturday. Democratic lawmakers who visited them there said Liam appeared frightened and lethargic. A federal judge ordered their release, blasting the DHS for trying to meet daily deportation quotas "apparently even if it requires traumatizing children." The family reunited in Minneapolis and are now in hiding. Liam's teenage brother has not gone to school this week."
The administration defended its tough tactics, saying agents "could use a little bit of a softer touch" but must "have to be tough" because it faces "really hard criminals." Masked ICE agents removed 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and his father, prompting a viral photograph and public outcry. DHS lawyers moved to fast-track the family's deportation even as lawyers say the family entered through a humanitarian program and has been applying for asylum. A federal judge ordered their release and criticized DHS for meeting daily deportation quotas at the expense of traumatizing children. The family reunited but remains in hiding, and a sibling has missed school.
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