U.S. Senator Bob Casey took to Twitter Wednesday in an effort to stop the deportation of a Honduran mother and her five-year-old son. He sent a series of tweets, slamming the Trump administration’s policies and accusing the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) of sending a mother and her son back home to be killed by gang members.
Woman flees Honduras with her son after witnessing a murder
As reported by NBC10, the woman fled Honduras with her young son in 2015 after witnessing the murder of her cousin by gang members. In his tweets, Casey included a photo of a letter he had sent to U.S. President Donald Trump about the issue.
Casey tweeted that the mother and her five-year-old were not “bad hombres,” using a term regularly used by Trump. He stressed that they are not in a gang – they are vulnerable and scared and “running from death.” In his letter Casey explained that Trump has the power to help the child return to safety.
.@realDonaldTrump I am sending you a photo of the 5yr old child, who was deported with his mother, despite possibly being eligible for SIJS. pic.twitter.com/6LiG5PvaEr
— Senator Bob Casey (@SenBobCasey) May 3, 2017
Among the series of tweets, Casey sent one message saying the time, energy and resources spent on deporting a five-year-old could be better spent targeting someone who actually posed a threat to the U.S.
Mother and son detained after crossing the border
The woman reportedly crossed the border with her son in Texas where the pair was detained. She explained to the border patrol agents that she was scared to return to Honduras as they were in danger. The mother and her son have reportedly been held in a family detention center in Berks County, Pennsylvania, which happens to be Casey’s home state, hence his particular interest in the case.
However, Liz Johnson, assistant director at ICE, said the woman and her son had run out of legal options, saying politicians are misleading the public by demonizing those men and women who are tasked with enforcing the laws Congress writes. According to Johnson, the woman entered the country unlawfully on December 17, 2015 and was detained the next day.
Johnson went on to say the woman and her son were deported on Wednesday after exhausting all legal remedies available to her. As reported by CNN, Johnson said before the woman’s deportation her case had been denied by the U.S. Supreme Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
Five-year-old eligible for special immigrant juvenile status
According to Carol Anne Donahoe, an attorney acting for the mother, the woman’s son is eligible for special immigrant juvenile status. While declining to name the Mother And Son due to fear of their security back in Honduras, she said they had already initiated his application process. Donahoe added that the family has been already been contacted by the gang members, telling them they know she is coming back to Honduras.
The attorneys attempted to halt the deportation due to the son’s status, but while they were talking to government attorneys, the family was already heading to John F. Kennedy Airport in New York and placed on a flight to Honduras.
Senator Casey contacts ICE with no results
On hearing of the deportation, Casey immediately called both Homeland Security and ICE, leaving messages that were not returned. He also reportedly spoke to Trump’s chief of staff, Reince Priebus.
Shame on @realDonaldTrump @Reince45 @DHSgov @ICEgov for turning their back on this child and his mother. They should be better than this.
— Senator Bob Casey (@SenBobCasey) May 4, 2017
Jacklin Rhoads, Casey’s press secretary has said there has been no progress since those calls, adding that the senator believes the deportations are an “atrocity” which is contrary to American values.
