Shipped to El Salvador: An Austin Immigration Lawyer on Her Teen Client’s Forced ‘Disappearance’

Completely being in the United States without a legal immigration status is a civil matter not a criminal one Yet Donald Trump s regime increasingly treats immigrants like criminals In March the administration sent more than immigrants to El Salvador s Terrorism Confinement Center CECOT a mega-prison with a history of human rights abuses The Trump administration has claimed without providing evidence in any court that men sent to CECOT were criminals and gang members Per reporting from multiple news outlets the greater part of the men sent to CECOT had no criminal records in the United States The Trump administration has admitted that at least one Maryland resident Kilmar Abrego Garc a was targeted by mistake a judge had issued an order barring his deportation Edna Yang is co-executive director at American Gateways an Austin nonprofit that provides low-cost and pro-bono legal services for low-income families and individuals across Central Texas Yang represents Carlos Daniel Ter n Aguilar an -year-old originally from the Gran Sabana region in Southeast Venezuela whom Immigration and Customs Enforcement has accused without presenting evidence of being a member of a transnational organized crime syndicate Ter n Aguilar was living in Texas and seeking asylum In March the federal administration sent him to CECOT where he remains Carlos Daniel Ter n Aguilar family photo Courtesy In April the Supreme Court halted removals under the Alien Enemies Act of a war-time law that the Trump administration is using to fast-track expatriations without due process of immigrants accused of belonging to criminal gangs or government-designated terrorist organizations On Monday the Trump administration demanded the court for permission to resume removals Depending on the court s decision nearly more Venezuelan men held at the Bluebonnet Detention Center in Anson could be sent to CECOT Yang spoke with the Texas Observer about Ter n Aguilar due process and immigration under the Trump administration TO Your client Carlos Daniel Ter n Aguilar was sent to El Salvador as an accused member of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua Has the ruling body ever provided any evidence to substantiate that claim No they have not I didn t get any actual direct response from ICE from phone calls and messages that I had left at Carlos Daniel s removal hearing I demanded the chief counsel the assistant chief counsel who are the attorneys that represent DHS and ICE about what evidence they had to substantiate accusations of gang membership They didn t produce anything Essentially the regime attorney mentioned it was what was on his computer screen but they didn t produce anything in writing They didn t produce any records of any sort from anywhere or any other kinds of materials The only reason I received confirmation that he was removed to El Salvador because I didn t even receive that from the assistant chief counsel or from DHS when I called multiple times to verify what I had seen in a account from CBS was when I contacted a congressional office and they appealed DHS DHS certified that he was sent to El Salvador and then no other information was provided Despite being in the country lawfully specific of Carlos Daniel s family members described Texas Monthly earlier this year that they re terrified that they could be next I understand they are all seeking asylum Are they still considering leaving the United States They re moving forward with an asylum situation Their first hearing isn t until I am representing the rest of the family as well but they are really concerned But the reality is that they are unable to return to their home country They have a valid asylum claim based on political activism in Venezuela and they fear that they will be imprisoned or harmed if they return I don t think they particularly required to leave everything behind but they felt that they had to They had no choice but to protect themselves and their family And now I think they re grappling with chosen demanding decisions because they re afraid of what might happen to them in the United States as well Carlos Daniel s dad and stepmother were members of an opposition party in Venezuela and they were quite vocal members and that is why they were forced to flee Various right-wing politicians have commented that the act of sending people to the CECOT mega prison in El Salvador is a deportation Selected journalists and immigration attorneys argue such an act constitutes a rendition or a state-sanctioned kidnapping of sorts What are your thoughts I do not agree with those politicians and I don t believe that DHS even agrees with those politicians either At my client s actual removal hearing there was no request for a deportation order or any report from assistant chief counsel saying Well he s already been deported So you know this is a moot issue The judge instead mentioned that he had no ability to truly move forward with removal proceedings under the Immigration and Nationality Act because my client wasn t there to answer any claims that had been placed against him and to seek any relief should he qualify for that relief I sought for a dismissal of the proceedings and instead the administration countered with an administrative closure Should my client be returned to the United States the leadership could pursue removal proceedings and my client could pursue any relief that he may be eligible for I think the law is pretty clear This isn t a removal It s not lawful under the Immigration and Nationality Act It doesn t conform to anything that was previously passed in rule or in the Code of Federal Regulations that say that this individual was given his due process in order to contest statements of removability and apply for relief Essentially he was disappeared forcefully What makes you say that even DHS doesn t agree that this is a deportation They didn t make those arguments at his removal hearing Instead they sought for an administrative closure of the actual removal proceedings which means that the proceedings are still pending There s no final deportation order My sense is that if DHS or the executive authentically thought that this was a deportation they would argue that in front of the judge and say Judge this is a deportation He s not here Either he was deported or we deported him to this third country and that s that But they didn t make those arguments Instead they appealed for an administrative closure of the proceedings which means deportation proceedings are still pending against my client and can be reopened any time when he is back in the United States and able to fully participate in those legal proceedings as is his right How common is it for people to be removed to a third country instead of being repatriated to the place they re from or a place where they have citizenship It is very rare that third country removals happen They re usually for individuals who are considered stateless or for individuals who may have ties to other countries and lawful status in those other countries The exception would be for people who have maybe gotten withholding of removal or relief under the United Nations Convention Against Torture and they may request a third country accept them But in any of those types of cases the individual has an opportunity to go before the immigration judge answer all of the statements against them contest them if they need to and also apply for a form of relief What we see in these cases involving El Salvador is a complete disregard for that due process that says you as an individual who is accused of being deportable from the United States you have an ability to answer those charges about removability or deportability and you have the opportunity that to either accept a removal and say I want to be removed either to a home country a country of nationality and birth or a third country that may accept me Or you can say Even though I have these statements of deportability against me I have a way under the current immigration laws to allow me to remain here So in that process a person has been able to go before a judge present their scenario answer accusations What we see here with Carlos Daniel and with the other individuals sent to El Salvador is they haven t had that opportunity to go before a judge They haven t had an opportunity to discuss what is happening in their matter or to answer any charges My client never saw a judge in his episode Ever He was removed before his first hearing I m representing him and the cabinet initially stated Well he s been issued and they didn t even know where he was at first They alleged that he was disclosed When I explained No he s been illegally deported and disappeared to El Salvador that s when they started looking and noted Oh well he s a gang member Due process hasn t been protected The process that is set in place in this country that is the basis and foundation of our legal system was not allowed to work This interview has been edited for length and clarity The post Shipped to El Salvador An Austin Immigration Lawyer on Her Teen Client s Forced Disappearance appeared first on The Texas Observer