WASHINGTON – Rep. Kathy Castor (D-Fla.) stated Monday {that a} mother in her Tampa district was “ripped away” from her toddler by ICE brokers and unlawfully deported to Cuba.
In a letter to President Donald Trump, Castor urges him to “immediately” grant humanitarian parole for Heidy Sánchez, whose husband informed Castor that ICE brokers’ separation of Sanchez from her toddler daughter was so traumatic that the newborn was taken to the hospital.
“The baby was still breastfeeding at the time your Administration tore them apart, and the baby’s ongoing health issues require her mother’s return to the U.S. as soon as possible,” Castor wrote to Trump.
“It is unconscionable and wrong for your ICE personnel to harm families in this way,” she stated. “Ms. Sánchez is entitled to due process, and her husband and daughter (both U.S. citizens) deserve to be treated with the dignity we value as Americans.”
The Florida congresswoman stated Sánchez, a house well being aide, was complying with an ICE request for a daily check-in at a Tampa workplace when brokers took her from her household and despatched her to Cuba. Her husband and toddler are U.S. residents, however Sánchez is from Cuba.
Neither an ICE spokesperson nor a White Home spokesperson instantly responded to requests for remark.
Right here’s the total textual content of Castor’s letter to Trump that she supplied to the press:
Pricey President Trump:
I write to name out the merciless and illegal therapy of Heidy Sánchez from Tampa, Florida who was ripped away from her toddler daughter and husband final Thursday and transported to Cuba. I urge you to grant Ms. Sánchez humanitarian parole and return her to her household in Tampa instantly.
Ms. Sánchez’s husband, Carlos Yuniel Valle, suggested me that the separation of mom and daughter was so sudden and traumatic that their toddler daughter was taken to the hospital. The newborn was nonetheless breastfeeding on the time your Administration tore them aside, and the newborn’s ongoing well being points require her mom’s return to the U.S. as quickly as potential. Ms. Sánchez, a mom and residential well being aide, was complying with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) request to often test in on the native Tampa workplace. Throughout her appointment final Tuesday, she was unceremoniously ripped away from her daughter and husband and transported to Cuba.
It’s unconscionable and mistaken to your ICE personnel to hurt households on this manner. Ms. Sánchez is entitled to due course of, and her husband and daughter (each U.S. residents) should be handled with the dignity we worth as Individuals. Because of the suffocating oppression in Cuba and lack of necessities like meals and clear water, Ms. Sánchez shouldn’t be trafficked to a rustic the place she might be harmed and endure.
You attended the funeral of Pope Francis over the weekend, so I like to recommend that you simply honor his reminiscence by performing constantly along with his current admonition that we’re “called upon to consider the legitimacy of norms and public policies in the light of the dignity of the person and his or her fundamental rights.”
The therapy of the Sánchez-Valle household is a deep stain in your Administration and is repugnant to American values and constitutional protections, however it doesn’t should be this fashion. You could have the authority to grant humanitarian parole to Ms. Sánchez and reunite this household immediately in Tampa. I urge you to take action instantly.
Sincerely,
Sánchez’s lawyer, Claudia Cañizares, informed The Related Press on Saturday that Sánchez had an excellent deportation order stemming from 2019, when she missed a listening to that led to her being detained for 9 months. Cuba didn’t take Sánchez again on the time, so she was launched in 2020 and informed to maintain up a daily schedule of check-ins with ICE.
Cañizares emphasised that Sánchez shouldn’t be a legal and has a robust case on humanitarian grounds for remaining within the U.S. She additionally famous that Sánchez’s toddler suffers from seizures.
Sánchez’s deportation is simply the most recent within the Trump administration’s marketing campaign to deport as many individuals as potential who could also be within the nation illegally and even quickly, like on a visa, no matter whether or not they’ve dedicated violent crimes. Many are being deported with out due course of, which is a proper beneath the Structure. ICE performing director Tom Homan has been notably aggressive and merciless amid this marketing campaign, however his threats of never-before-seen ranges of deportations have fallen quick, so now he’s telling individuals to deport themselves.
The Supreme Courtroom final month blocked the Trump administration’s efforts to deport a gaggle of Venezuelan immigrants beneath an 18th century wartime regulation. However that was after the White Home leaned on the obscure regulation to deport greater than 200 Venezuelan-born immigrants to an El Salvador jail. Trump claimed they have been gang members, however there may be little to no proof to help this.
The White Home confirmed this month that Trump can also be wanting into methods to deport U.S. residents, which might be unlawful.
“These would be heinous, violent criminals who have broken our nation’s laws repeatedly,” White Home press secretary Karoline Leavitt informed reporters. “These are violent, repeat offenders on American streets.”
