Detroit Lawmakers Urge ICE to Release Students, Local Construction Worker

December 8, 2025

Ernesto Cuevas Enciso, a 34-year-old construction worker and DACA recipient, was detained by ICE while driving to work in Ypsilanti, despite having pending legal permanent residency applications and valid work authorization. Community leaders, including Michigan state senators and Detroit city council members, are demanding his release, arguing he was following proper immigration procedures and should be allowed to remain with his wife, a U.S. citizen, and their one-year-old child. The detention represents a shift in ICE policy under the Trump administration, which now arrests individuals with pending immigration applications rather than waiting for application outcomes.

Who is affected

Ernesto Cuevas Enciso (34-year-old DACA recipient and construction worker)
Cuevas Enciso's wife (a U.S. citizen) and their one-year-old child
Four students from Detroit Public Schools Community District, including two 16-year-old cousins being held in Texas and another student with a pending asylum application
Two parents of the detained cousins
Immigrant communities in Southwest Detroit
Teachers and staff at Western International High School
DACA recipients and immigrants with pending applications throughout Metro Detroit

What action is being taken

Federal immigration enforcement is detaining Cuevas Enciso at a for-profit detention facility near Baldwin, Michigan
Community members, faith leaders, and pro-immigration advocates are calling for ICE to release detained individuals
Detroit City Councilmember Gabriela Santiago-Romero is using social media to spread awareness of immigration raids throughout the community
A group of elected officials (including Senator Stephanie Chang, Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib, and others) sent a letter to ICE on December 7 urging Ernesto's release
ICE is detaining people with pending immigration applications and deferred action status

Why it matters

This situation represents a significant policy shift in federal immigration enforcement that breaks from decades of bipartisan practice of protecting young immigrants and those with pending applications from detention and deportation. The arrests create fear and undermine trust in institutions among immigrant communities who are attempting to follow legal pathways to permanent residency. These detentions separate families, remove productive community members from their workplaces and homes, and signal that even individuals with work authorization, pending applications, and deep community ties are now vulnerable to deportation under current policies. The reopening of for-profit detention facilities and the targeting of DACA recipients, students, and asylum seekers marks a fundamental change in how immigration enforcement operates.

What's next

Advocates are asking community members to show up to the Tuesday, December 9 DPSCD board meeting at Martin Luther King High School to call on Superintendent Nikolai Vitti and the school board to make a statement condemning the arrest of four students. One detained student has a hearing scheduled for April 2026 regarding his affirmative asylum application.

Read full article from source: Michigan Chronicle