"There were no stars in the October sky. No moon that 64-year-old Masuma Khan could see from the narrow window of the California City Immigration Processing Center. "No planes," she said, recalling her confinement. Once a prison, the facility in the Mojave Desert, located 67 miles east of Bakersfield, reopened in April to hold people in removal proceedings, including Khan. It was not the kind of place where she imagined ending up - not after living in the country for 28 years, caring for her daughter and surviving one of California's deadliest wildfires, the Eaton fire."
"As fire recovery efforts were underway in Los Angeles, the Trump administration launched immigration raids in the city, hampering recovery efforts and creating more distress for immigrants after the fires. Although Trump said the mass deportations would target criminals, news reports and court filings show the roundups ensnared immigrants with no criminal history, green card applicants, even American citizens."
"Khan was taken into custody by ICE agents and kept in a cold room for almost an entire day. She said agents denied her access to a lawyer and a phone until she signed deportation papers. Khan resisted but later signed."
Masuma Khan, a 64-year-old west Altadena resident, survived the Jan. 7 Eaton fire that destroyed more than 9,000 structures and killed 19 people. Months later she faced deportation after a routine immigration check-in while adjusting her status. Immigration raids in Los Angeles during fire recovery targeted a wide range of immigrants, including people with no criminal history and green card applicants, which hampered recovery efforts and increased distress. Khan was detained at the California City Immigration Processing Center, held in a cold room for nearly a day, and said agents denied her access to a lawyer and a phone until she signed deportation papers.
Read at Los Angeles Times
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