Family Devastated as Trump-Era Immigration Policy Keeps Queens Father Locked Up
For 17-year-old Liset Fernandez, this summer was consumed by fear and hope for her father, Luis Fernandez. After weeks in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody, the family finally received good news: an immigration judge in Texas granted Luis’s release on a $5,000 bond.
But that moment of relief quickly crumbled. When Liset logged onto a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) website to pay the bond, she was shocked to see her father listed as ineligible for release. The heartbreaking task fell on her shoulders — she had to tell her dad that instead of coming home, he would remain behind bars.
“It was upsetting for everyone,” Liset said. “His voice sounded completely disappointed.”
A Life in the US, Suddenly Shattered
Luis, who first came to the US from Ecuador in 1994, had built his life in Queens, New York, working long shifts at the Square Diner in Tribeca. He supported his wife, 17-year-old Liset, and his nine-year-old son, while also paying taxes like any other hardworking American.
When he was detained in Livingston, Texas, Liset picked up extra retail shifts to keep the family afloat. His coworkers at the iconic diner rallied around him, raising over $20,000 to support the family in his absence.
The DHS Clampdown
Luis’s detention is tied to a new DHS policy that claims anyone who entered the US illegally is automatically ineligible for bond, regardless of how long they’ve lived here or whether they pose a flight risk.
In Luis’s case, DHS went a step further — it used a rarely invoked maneuver to pause the judge’s ruling while appealing it. Under federal regulations, the agency can place an automatic stay on an immigration judge’s bond decision, effectively keeping someone locked up until the Board of Immigration Appeals makes a ruling.
With the backlog in appeals, no one knows how long Luis will remain detained. His attorney, Craig Relles, warned it could take months — even years.
“Maximum Punishment at Every Step”
Immigration experts argue that Luis’s ordeal is part of a broader Trump-era strategy to tighten every corner of the immigration system.
“At every step of the way, they’re inflicting the maximum punishment on people,” said Suchita Mathur, a lawyer with the American Immigration Council. “It’s designed to make the process so unbearable that people just give up.”
This automatic stay policy dates back to the post-9/11 era, but lawyers say it was rarely used until this summer. Now, DHS attorneys are reportedly instructed to appeal every bond decision and stay every ruling. One agency insider claimed lawyers were even threatened with termination if they refused to comply.
Courts Push Back
Federal judges in Minnesota, Nebraska, and Maryland have recently ruled in favor of detained migrants, blasting the DHS practice as a violation of due process rights.
“The government’s discretion in immigration is deep and wide,” wrote Judge Julie Rubin of Maryland, “but surely it cannot override the constitutional protections of due process. The automatic stay makes the judge’s ruling an empty gesture.”
Still, DHS insists it is acting within the law. Officials pointed to Luis’s two prior DWI convictions from 2003 and 2014, arguing that he remains a “criminal illegal alien.”
“Criminal illegal aliens are not welcome in the US,” DHS declared in a statement, vowing to enforce Trump’s hardline immigration policies.
A Different Side of Luis
To his coworkers, Luis is anything but a criminal. At the diner, he was known as the man who would cover shifts, mentor new hires, crack jokes, and even hand over tips to colleagues who had to step out for emergencies.
He’d FaceTime his kids during breaks and never complained about customers. His coworkers teased him about his quirky habit of mixing giant bowls of soup and salad, usually chicken, sometimes a wild combination.
“He’s honest with everything — money, food, you name it. And the most important thing is that he’s the best father,” one coworker said.
Even in detention, Luis has been working in the kitchen and cutting hair for fellow detainees.
A Daughter Forced to Carry the Burden
The last time Liset saw her dad was on June 24, when he came into her room to say goodbye before a routine asylum check-in. Hours later, he was detained by ICE.
While Liset went to the beach to celebrate summer break, she got the call she’ll never forget:
“They’re going to take me. ICE is here. I’m not coming home anytime soon. If anything happens, take care of yourself.”
Since then, he’s been locked up in Texas, where conditions are cold, crowded, and harsh. In the first weeks, he shared a cup of ramen noodles with two other men just to get by.
Meanwhile, Liset has become the family’s backbone — working shifts, managing her dad’s legal case, and caring for her brother, all while navigating her final years of high school.
“This is incredibly draining,” she admitted.
The Bigger Picture
Luis is one of thousands of immigrants arrested under the Trump administration’s ramped-up deportation efforts. Nearly half of the arrests in New York this year happened at routine check-ins, just like his.
For Liset and her family, this battle isn’t about politics — it’s about survival. And for now, the man who spent decades building a life in America, paying taxes, and raising kids who are US citizens, remains trapped in legal limbo.
Description:
"After decades in the US, Luis Fernandez was detained by ICE despite being granted bond. His daughter Liset now works extra shifts to support the family as a Trump-era policy keeps him locked up. A heartbreaking story of family, justice, and survival."