Federal Judge Questions Deportation of 2-Year-Old U.S. Citizen to Honduras Without Due Process

The Department of Homeland Security’s ICE detention facility is shown in Jena, La., on March 21

A federal judge in Louisiana stated Friday that a 2-year-old U.S. citizen appears to have been deported alongside her mother to Honduras without receiving meaningful due process. In an order setting a hearing for May 16, U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty expressed concern about the circumstances surrounding the child’s removal, emphasizing the court's strong suspicion that the government deported a U.S. citizen improperly.

Judge Doughty detailed that the government argued the deportation was acceptable because the mother desired for her daughter to accompany her to Honduras. However, the court noted it had not independently verified that consent. During the deportation process, the court contacted a government attorney at 12:19 p.m. local time while the plane was still airborne but was informed by 1:06 p.m. that the mother and child had already arrived in Honduras.

Doughty, chief judge of the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana, underscored the seriousness of the situation, stressing the importance of the upcoming hearing to clarify the events that led to the deportation.

The mother and her two daughters, including the U.S. citizen identified as VML in court documents, were taken into custody Tuesday morning in New Orleans by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The family had been attending a scheduled meeting at an Intensive Supervision Appearance Program office. The mother, originally from Honduras, had previously been released from ICE detention under the program in 2021.

Following the mother’s detention, the father of VML, who resides in the United States, sought custody of his daughter. Attorneys representing a proposed custodian stated in court filings that there was a willing and able custodian prepared to care for the child within the United States.

VML was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on January 4, 2023, confirming her status as a U.S. citizen. The second child, 11 years old, was born in Honduras.

Attorneys fighting the deportation argued that removing a U.S. citizen child without due process violates constitutional rights. However, government lawyers maintained that the mother held legal custody and had expressed in writing her intention to take her daughter with her to Honduras. An image of the handwritten letter, written in Spanish and dated Thursday at 6:23 p.m., indicated her desire to bring the child along while still under ICE custody and before Friday's deportation.

The Department of Homeland Security and ICE have not issued a public statement regarding the incident.