A nine-months-pregnant US citizen was detained by ICE in California, sparking further outrage about the federal immigration agency’s ‘overreach’ amid violent protests.
What happened
Cary Lopez Alvarado, 28, was detained by immigration authorities in California over the weekend despite being a US citizen, according to an NBC Los Angeles report.
She experienced sharp pains in the stomach and had to be hospitalized after her release on Sunday.
Why it matters
The wrongful detention of a nine-months-pregnant US citizen by ICE highlights serious concerns about racial profiling, due process violations and the agency's unchecked authority.
It comes at a time when Los Angeles has been rocked by violent anti-ICE protests following a series of raids carried out by the immigration agency.
The full story
Cary Lopez was taken into custody in Hawthorne, California by ICE agents. Lopez is just one week away from giving birth. She was released on Sunday and is now speaking out against her detention.
On Sunday in Hawthorne, masked men dressed in Border Patrol uniforms arrived in marked US Customs and Border Protection vehicles and followed a white pickup truck carrying two undocumented workers, one of whom was Cary López Alvarado’s partner, into a private parking area.
Lopez and her cousin, Alberto Sandoval – both US citizens – opened the gate to allow the truck to enter. Lopez Alvarado later said that she and her cousin believed the agents would need a warrant to legally enter their workplace.
{{/usCountry}}Lopez and her cousin, Alberto Sandoval – both US citizens – opened the gate to allow the truck to enter. Lopez Alvarado later said that she and her cousin believed the agents would need a warrant to legally enter their workplace.
{{/usCountry}}“They had us all surrounded,” she said.
Lopez Alvarado filmed her interaction with the ICE agents. In one video, she can be heard telling them “I'm gonna need you guys to leave. This is private property.”
In another video, one of the agents says, "Excuse me ma'am. You are interfering with my arrest. I'm doing my job... Can you please move away?"
Shoved, arrested, released
Cary Lopez Alvarado was arrested along with her husband, his coworker and her cousin. Her husband and his coworker are both undocumented. The 28-year-old says that federal agents accused her of obstructing the arrest of her undocumented husband.
“I had lost my balance because he was kind of shoving me away from the door,” a tearful Lopez told NBC from her hospital bed on Monday. “That’s when I kind of leaned forward, trying to protect the stomach."
“I wasn’t resisting or anything,” she said. “I can’t fight back. I’m pregnant.”