ICE on Thursday arrested a plaintiff involved in a class action lawsuit challenging Los Angeles immigration raids, prompting lawyers to express concerns of retaliation and demand his release.
Pasadena resident Isaac Antonio Villegas Molina was detained Thursday during an investigation with Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to his immigration attorney Stacey Tolchin. Villegas sued the federal government last year after he and two other day laborers were arrested by immigration agents on June 18 while they waited at a Pasadena bus stop.
An immigration judge ordered Villegas, who is from Panama, released next month on $5,000 bond, and he has since been checked with ICE, Tolchin said. Villegas was scheduled to go before an immigration judge on April 24 on a motion to end the removal proceedings against him.
Following Villegas’ arrest on Thursday, Tolchin filed a habeas petition in federal court, challenging his imprisonment and demanding his immediate release. In it, Tolchin described the lawsuit as “one of the first cases filed challenging the Trump administration’s immigration patrols as a violation of the Fourth Amendment.” No reason was given for his re-detention.
“I think 100% it’s because of this lawsuit,” Tolchin said. “He was incredibly brave to come forward and become a plaintiff…For him to be targeted because he is pursuing his rights is unacceptable, but not surprising given what we are seeing.”
The Department of Homeland Security and ICE did not immediately respond to requests for comment. An ICE detainer locator Friday morning showed Villegas was being held at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center.
The National Day Laborer Organizing Network announced a rally and press conference outside the B-18 detention facility in Downtown LA on Friday afternoon to condemn the “unlawful arrest and imprisonment” of Villegas. Villegas came to the country on a non-immigrant visa in 2012 and has lived in the country for more than 13 years
Last year, the American Civil Liberties Union, the Public Counsel, other groups and private attorneys filed a lawsuit — now known as Vasquez Perdomo vs. Mullin – On the sidelines of several immigrant rights groups, three immigrants were picked up at a bus stop, including Villegas, and two U.S. citizens, one of whom was held by agents despite showing identification.
Villegas was waiting at a bus stop in Pasadena with other day laborers, including Pedro Vasquez Perdomo and Carlos Osorto, when masked armed men aggressively approached and arrested them “based on their appearance,” Tolchin said in the habeas petition. The arrests came as part of “Operation At Large”, a massive immigration operation in Southern California.
The Vasquez Perdomo lawsuit resulted in an initial temporary restraining order that was upheld by the Ninth Circuit. That restraining order was later stayed by the Supreme Court. The case is still ongoing, with a preliminary injunction hearing scheduled for September.
“For the federal government to arrest someone who boldly called out the government’s illegal immigration raids is a shocking act of retaliation,” Mohammed Tajsar, an attorney for the ACLU of Southern California, said in a statement. “Because the First Amendment protects everyone’s right to sue the government, we expect Isaacs to be immediately released.”
Lauren Michelle Wilfong, an attorney with the National Day Laborer Organizing Network, said she learned of Villegas’ recent arrest after receiving a voicemail from the detention center around noon Thursday.
Wilfong said Villegas had been meeting all his immigration requirements since his release last year.
“I think he’s very surprised by his detention, as are we,” Wilfong said. “It certainly also raises concerns about whether First Amendment retaliation is occurring. Isaac, along with Pedro and Carlos, decided that they want to fight not only for themselves but for everyone else … The possibility that there is now more danger and harm to Isaac is really troubling to us.”
