Judge says US citizen, 2, may have been deported without 'meaningful process'

A federal judge has raised serious concerns about the deportation of a two-year-old US citizen, who may have been sent back to Honduras without receiving a fair legal process. This situation has emerged amid a significant increase in the deportation of undocumented immigrants since Donald Trump returned to the presidency. Judge Terry Doughty expressed a strong suspicion that the child, referred to as VML, was deported without any meaningful legal proceedings. The child, who was born in Louisiana, along with her mother and 11-year-old sister, was taken into custody during a routine appointment at an immigration office in New Orleans on April 22. According to a spokesperson from the Department of Homeland Security, the mother intended to take her children with her when she was deported to Honduras. The judge attempted to arrange a phone call with the girl's mother to clarify the situation, but a government lawyer informed him that this was not possible because the mother and presumably VML had just been released in Honduras. The immigration status of the girl's mother, father, and sister remains uncertain, but it is clear that the two-year-old is a US citizen. Judge Doughty stated, 'It is illegal and unconstitutional to deport, detain for deportation, or recommend deportation of a US citizen. ' A hearing has been scheduled for May 19 to address the strong suspicion that the government may have deported a US citizen without following proper legal procedures. Tricia McLaughlin, the Assistant Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, stated in a message to CBS News that the mother made the decision to take her child with her to Honduras, adding that it is common for parents to want to leave with their children. Earlier this week, the girl's father also filed for temporary legal authority, which would allow his sister-in-law, who is also a US citizen, to gain custody of the children. However, an ICE agent spoke with a family attorney and refused to honor this request, stating that the father could attempt to pick up the child, but he would also be taken into custody. In a similar case in Florida, a Cuban woman with a one-year-old child and her US citizen husband were detained during a scheduled immigration appointment and were flown back to Cuba just two days later. The woman, identified as Heidy Sánchez, was still breastfeeding her daughter, who suffers from seizures, according to her lawyer. He argued that Ms. Sánchez was not a criminal and should have been allowed to stay in the US on humanitarian grounds. Since Donald Trump took office again on January 20, thousands of undocumented immigrants have been detained. His strict immigration policies have faced numerous legal challenges. In one high-profile case, the government admitted to mistakenly deporting Kilmar Ábrego García, a national from El Salvador, but they claim he is a member of the MS-13 gang, which his lawyer and family deny. Mr. Ábrego García has never been convicted of a crime. The Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the government should not have deported him, but the Trump administration has stated that he will 'never' be allowed to live in the US again.