BUTLER COUNTY, Ohio — Protests erupted outside the Butler County Jail over the weekend, centered on the detention of 19-year-old Emerson Colindres by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Demonstrators gathered both Sunday night and Monday morning, leading to one arrest amid rising tensions.
Colindres, who has lived in the United States since he was eight, came to the country from Honduras in 2014 with his mother, Ada Bell Baquedano-Amador, and younger sister, seeking asylum from gang violence. Court documents from February 2022 reveal that Baquedano-Amador filed for asylum, citing threats and violence in their home country as justification for their claim.
Neil Fleischer, an immigration attorney, explained that the family faced significant challenges in their legal journey. Despite the mother being deemed credible by the judge during their proceedings, the asylum claim was ultimately denied. According to Fleischer, the judge ruled that the threats experienced did not meet the standard for persecution as defined under U.S. law.
After several appeals, including one to the Board of Immigration Appeals, the family’s removal order was upheld by the Sixth Circuit Court, one of the highest courts in the country. With this decision, the deportation order became effective, and the government proceeded with its enforcement.
Fleischer emphasized that for an asylum claim to succeed, it must demonstrate a fear of persecution based on one of five protected grounds: race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group. In this case, the family lacked the necessary articulation of a particular social group, resulting in the denial of their claims.
Such cases are prevalent among those fleeing violence as they journey to the United States. Many migrants from Central America cite gang violence as their reason for leaving; however, without established criteria for a credible fear, applications for asylum often face rejection.
As of Monday evening, Colindres remains in custody at the Butler County Jail. Meanwhile, his mother has been informed that she has 30 days to voluntarily leave the United States.
This situation highlights the complex and often harsh realities of immigration law and the struggles faced by families seeking refuge in the U.S. The community’s response underscores a growing frustration with the immigration system and its treatment of those in vulnerable situations.
This article was automatically written by Open AI, and the people, facts, circumstances, and story may be inaccurate. Any article can be requested for removal, retraction, or correction by emailing contact@publiclawlibrary.org.