The family of a five-year-old boy with a “rare and aggressive” form of kidney cancer has sued ICE after his treatments were interrupted when the agency deported him.
The boy, referred to BY the pseudonym Romeo, was deported along with his seven-year-old sister and their 25-year-old mother on April 25, according to a federal lawsuit filed in Louisiana.
The children are U.S. citizens and were born in Louisiana and the young boy was diagnosed with his condition at the age of two. “Romeo needs regular specialized care and follow-up treatment to this day,” the lawsuit states.
The case is being brought by the National Immigration Project on behalf of the family as well as another mother, who also has two children who are U.S. citizens – which claims the families were deported “without even a semblance of due process.”
Documents seen by The Independent allege that ICE violated its own policy and multiple federal laws when officers secretly detained the families in hotel rooms, denied them the opportunity to speak to family and make decisions about or arrangements for their minor children.
The suit also alleges that the families were denied access to counsel and deported within less than a day in one case and just over two days in the other.
“In the early morning hours of Friday, April 25, 2025, the United States government illegally deported three U.S. citizen children, along with their non-U.S. citizen family members, to Honduras,” the suit states.
“Earlier that week, Plaintiffs “Julia” and … “Rosario” – two mothers of U.S. citizen children – attended what they believed to be regularly scheduled check-ins with a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement contractor.
“In violation of the government’s own directive, Julia and Rosario were never given a choice as to whether their children should be deported with them and were prohibited from contacting their counsel or having meaningful contact with their families to arrange for the care of their children.
“Instead, they were held effectively incommunicado with their children and illegally deported without even a semblance of due process.”
“ICE’s actions in this case are not only unlawful, they are cruel and show a complete disregard for family values and the well-being of children,” said Sirine Shebaya, Executive Director of the National Immigration Project.
“No government agency should have the power to disappear families, ignore medical needs, and disregard its own policies and constitutional rights simply in order to achieve a goal of unfettered enforcement.
“Without accountability, violations like this will only happen more frequently. Through this lawsuit, we seek justice, accountability, and the immediate safe return of these families to the United States.”
Speaking via the NIP, Rosario said that the ordeal had been “scary and overwhelming,”
“After so many years in the United States, it has been devastating to be sent to Honduras. Life in Honduras is incredibly hard. I don’t have the resources to care for my children the way they need.”
The lawsuit demands that ICE be held accountable for the “unlawful deportation of U.S. citizens and its disregard for the rights and safety of children.”
The plaintiffs seek immediate return to the U.S, recognition of their right to make custodial decisions for their children, and compensation for the harms the families have endured.
The Independent has reached out to ICE and the DHS for comment on the case.
