US Deportation of College Student Rejected as 'Mistake', Government Apologizes
The Trump administration has acknowledged that the deportation of a college student from Massachusetts to Honduras was an "inadvertent mistake" and has apologized for the error. The case involves Any Lucía López Belloza, 19, who was detained at Boston's airport on November 20 while trying to return home to visit her family in Texas.
López Belloza had been granted a temporary stay of deportation by a federal court order on November 21, but ICE officers disregarded the ruling and flew her out of the country two days later. Her lawyers claim that this was a blatant disregard for due process and a clear violation of her rights.
According to the government's own statement, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer mistakenly believed the court order no longer applied and failed to activate a system that alerts other ICE officers when a case is subject to judicial review. This error led to López Belloza being removed from the country without notice.
The administration maintains that López Belloza's deportation was lawful, citing an immigration judge's earlier ruling in 2016 and a Board of Immigration Appeals dismissal in 2017. However, her lawyers argue that this does not excuse the government's actions and that she is entitled to be returned to the US.
Federal Judge Richard Stearns has ruled that the government's apology was welcome, but he questioned whether his court had jurisdiction over the case. While Stearns did express sympathy for López Belloza, he also suggested that she may be able to explore applying for a student visa and that her deportation was ultimately an "unfortunate" mistake.
López Belloza herself expressed gratitude for the government's apology, saying that it brought her some hope. However, she also described her experience as "horrible" and acknowledged that the mistake has turned her life upside down.
The Trump administration has acknowledged that the deportation of a college student from Massachusetts to Honduras was an "inadvertent mistake" and has apologized for the error. The case involves Any Lucía López Belloza, 19, who was detained at Boston's airport on November 20 while trying to return home to visit her family in Texas.
López Belloza had been granted a temporary stay of deportation by a federal court order on November 21, but ICE officers disregarded the ruling and flew her out of the country two days later. Her lawyers claim that this was a blatant disregard for due process and a clear violation of her rights.
According to the government's own statement, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer mistakenly believed the court order no longer applied and failed to activate a system that alerts other ICE officers when a case is subject to judicial review. This error led to López Belloza being removed from the country without notice.
The administration maintains that López Belloza's deportation was lawful, citing an immigration judge's earlier ruling in 2016 and a Board of Immigration Appeals dismissal in 2017. However, her lawyers argue that this does not excuse the government's actions and that she is entitled to be returned to the US.
Federal Judge Richard Stearns has ruled that the government's apology was welcome, but he questioned whether his court had jurisdiction over the case. While Stearns did express sympathy for López Belloza, he also suggested that she may be able to explore applying for a student visa and that her deportation was ultimately an "unfortunate" mistake.
López Belloza herself expressed gratitude for the government's apology, saying that it brought her some hope. However, she also described her experience as "horrible" and acknowledged that the mistake has turned her life upside down.
I'm not surprised about this deportation thing... what if they're trying to silence López Belloza? You know, suppress the truth about their policies? 
Like, who's really in charge here? The courts or whoever's pulling strings from behind the scenes? 
This whole thing just feels like a cover-up. And why was this ICE officer so careless with the system? Were they trying to speed up the process or something? 
I'm not buying it... there's more to this story than what we're being told.
, I'm so relieved to hear that the deportation of Any Lucía López Belloza was a total #Mistake 
. The fact that an ICE officer made such a huge error is just #Embarrassing 
, and I'm glad they're taking responsibility for it.
, and I hope she gets the #Justice she deserves soon 
. Let's keep spreading awareness about immigration issues and making sure everyone has access to due process #HumanRightsMatter!
I feel like this is a super frustrating case. I mean, López Belloza already had a court order in place to prevent her deportation, but ICE just ignored it? It's like they didn't even care about following the rules. And now she's stuck in Honduras with no idea when or if she'll be allowed back into the US. 
This whole thing just feels so unnecessary. I don't think one 'mistake' apology is enough to make up for what happened. We need more accountability from our government officials, you know? 
. I mean, who would want to be deported despite having a valid court order? 
. López Belloza's case highlights how important it is to have a system in place that protects people like her, who are just trying to live their lives & pursue their education 
.
. And I hope this apology leads to some real changes in how ICE operates 
. Our gov't needs to do better by its own citizens, especially those who are vulnerable & need extra protection 
ICE needs a major revamp, like, come on guys! You gotta check those court orders 10 times before taking someone away 
this is so crazy! I mean, who makes a mistake like that? 
an ice officer making a mistake with someone's deportation? it's like something out of a movie... you know like "the wire" or "breakfast at tiffany's"... but not in a good way 
. López Belloza was just trying to go home for the holidays and ends up getting deported because of some stupid mistake. and now she's all messed up 
it's not like that's what the government is supposed to be doing... which makes this whole situation even more frustrating 
This deportation thing is just so messed up 
. It's not like she did anything wrong, you know? 
. We gotta protect people's rights and make sure they're treated fairly 
.
i hope López Belloza gets justice and can return to her life in the US. she deserves better than this 
. Lopez Belloza deserves so much better than this 
.
That's some serious bureaucratic red tape right there. And what about López Belloza's lawyers claiming it was a blatant disregard for due process? 
. I don't think we'll ever get to the bottom of this, but I'm keeping an eye on it, that's for sure 
.
? and now her life is literally turned upside down 
and then having her deportation order just magically cancelled because of an ice officer's mistake... its like, what even is due process if not being respected?