ICE releases wife of U.S. Army soldier after month-long detention

Immigration and Customs Enforcement connected Thursday released the woman of an active-duty U.S. Army worker and Afghanistan warfare seasoned aft a monthlong detention, her husband, Sgt. 1st Class Jose Serrano, told CBS News.

Serrano's wife, El Salvador autochthonal Deisy Rivera Ortega, was detained by ICE connected April 14 during an migration assignment successful El Paso, Texas. Serrano, who has served successful the Army for 27 years, including 3 deployments to Afghanistan, first revealed to CBS News past period that his woman had been arrested by ICE aft surviving successful the U.S. for astir a decade.

She attended that assignment arsenic portion of an exertion for a peculiar migration programme known arsenic Parole successful Place, designed to support subject spouses and parents who are successful the U.S. illegally oregon without imperishable ineligible presumption from deportation.

Rivera Ortega's apprehension was 1 of respective ICE detentions successful caller months involving relatives of U.S. work members. While historically rare, those arrests person go much communal nether the 2nd Trump administration, which has vowed to oversee the largest deportation run successful U.S. history.

At the time, the Department of Homeland Security said ICE arrested Rivera Ortega due to the fact that of a deportation bid dating backmost to 2019. DHS besides said she was convicted of entering the U.S. illegally, a national misdemeanor.

Serrano said his woman had been moving successful the U.S. legally with a authorities licence stemming from a ineligible extortion she received nether the United Nations Convention Against Torture that shields her from being deported to her autochthonal El Salvador. If granted, her pending Parole successful Place exertion could besides let Rivera Ortega to get a greenish paper oregon imperishable residency based connected her matrimony to a U.S. citizen.

Serrano said his woman was informed successful ICE detention that she was facing deportation to a 3rd country, specified arsenic Mexico, due to the fact that her ineligible extortion lone bars officials from returning her to El Salvador. Serrano, who joined Rivera Ortega successful 2022, said his wife's detention exacerbated his intelligence wellness challenges, noting helium has been treated antecedently for a traumatic encephalon injury, PTSD and depression. 

During an interrogation with CBS News past week, White House borderline czar Tom Homan pledged to "look into" Rivera Ortega's lawsuit aft being asked astir it.

While helium argued that those who person received deportation orders person been afforded "due process," Homan besides acknowledged that it was a "difficult" lawsuit and noted ICE officers "have discretion" connected who to people and who not to target.