A federal judge in Oregon has ruled to release a Mexican asylum seeker from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention, arguing that the government’s detention of the individual was unlawful. The 24-year-old man, known as Y-Z-L-H, had been held for nearly a month after being arrested moments following an asylum hearing in Portland, Oregon. The judge, Michael H. Simon, found that ICE had violated the Administrative Procedure Act by detaining the man without a justified legal basis, given his temporary legal status, which remained valid until July 2025.
The migrant, who came to the U.S. in July 2023, claimed he had been threatened by the violent Mexican cartel Familia Michoacana. U.S. officials allowed him to stay temporarily on humanitarian grounds, and he applied for asylum about a year ago. During his asylum hearing on June 5, he requested more time to find a lawyer, but the government moved to dismiss his case. After the judge granted the dismissal over his objection, ICE arrested him and transported him to Tacoma detention facility in Washington state.
Attorneys for Innovation Law Lab, an Oregon-based nonprofit legal organization representing the migrant, argued that federal authorities had no lawful basis for arresting Y-Z-L-H and had not formally revoked his temporary parole status. The judge agreed, stating that ICE failed to follow due process by not explaining or justifying the arrest. Government lawyers claimed the detention was allowed under the discretion of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem, but the judge rejected this, emphasizing the executive branch must follow the law and adhere to checks and balances.
Initially, the government claimed Y-Z-L-H had been notified in April that his temporary status would end that month, but later reversed, acknowledging that his parole remained valid through July 19, 2025. A day before his arrest, Y-Z-L-H was granted a five-year work permit under an October 2023 policy change by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), which extended the validity period of employment authorization for asylum seekers. The migrant lives in Newport, Oregon and has no criminal record.
Innovation Law Lab has been involved in several high-profile immigration cases, including the 2020 lawsuit against former President Donald Trump’s