Jeanette Vizguerra Released from ICE Detention After Nine Months

Jeanette Vizguerra, a prominent immigrant rights activist in Colorado, was released from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention on December 25, 2023, after being held for over nine months. Her release followed a ruling by an immigration judge who determined that she posed no flight risk or danger to the community. The judge’s decision came just days earlier, allowing her family to post the required bond of $5,000.

According to a statement from the American Friends Service Committee, Vizguerra’s family secured her release with assistance from the Immigrant Freedom Fund. Supporters celebrated her return, with plans for a “celebration rally” scheduled for December 26 at noon outside the Alfred A. Arraj Courthouse in Denver.

Vizguerra’s journey gained national attention in 2017 when she sought sanctuary at a Denver church under the Trump administration. Following a hold on her deportation that was not renewed, she was recognized as one of TIME Magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world that same year.

After receiving a temporary two-year reprieve that allowed her to remain in the United States until March 2019, Vizguerra’s attempts to secure permanent residency faced challenges. Despite advocacy from prominent figures such as Senator Michael Bennet and then-Representative Jared Polis, who is now Colorado’s governor, her application for a U Visa—a program for undocumented victims of certain crimes—was denied.

A timeline provided by ICE indicates that Vizguerra had been granted stays of deportation in both 2021 and 2023, each lasting a year. She was arrested on March 17, 2023, in the parking lot of an Aurora Target store where she worked.

Having immigrated from Mexico City to Colorado in 1997, Vizguerra has faced deportation efforts since 2009, stemming from a traffic stop that revealed a fraudulent Social Security card. In a lawsuit filed against ICE in 2019, she contended that she was unaware the Social Security number belonged to someone else.

Her legal team has argued that ICE’s attempts to deport her were based on an invalid order, which they have contested in federal court. While a senior official with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security previously stated that Vizguerra has a final order of deportation, her legal representatives dispute this claim.

Despite the complexities surrounding her status, an ICE spokesperson has maintained that Vizguerra received due process throughout her immigration proceedings. As of now, Denver7 has reached out to both ICE and the Department of Homeland Security for comment, and the situation remains fluid.

The community is poised to rally in support of Vizguerra, reflecting the ongoing struggle for immigrant rights in the United States.