An 8-year-old boy was taken into federal custody after an immigration appointment in San Diego. Video shows three armed federal agents walking him away from an ICE field office and into an elevator. Lawmakers and local school leaders have criticized the action. Immigration officials have disputed that account. They say they acted to keep him safe.
The boy is a third grader at Fay Elementary School in City Heights, San Diego. He is Haitian. Earlier this year, he lost Temporary Protected Status as part of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown. On Thursday, November 5, he attended an ICE appointment with his uncle. He was detained alone after the visit. He had been living with his uncle and cousins. His father was deported to Mexico over a year ago. Video recorded by a volunteer observer at the federal building in downtown San Diego shows three armed agents walking the boy away from the field office and into an elevator.
For Haitian families still on Temporary Protected Status, the case carries a direct warning. A required check-in can become a detention and separation event when guardianship is not documented. The Supreme Court’s decision to end Haitian TPS means more families now face the same appointment calendar.
The boy remains in the custody of the Office of Refugee Resettlement. It is unclear whether he will be removed from the United States. On Tuesday, November 10, six Democratic lawmakers wrote a letter to Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. They asked where the child is being held. They also asked what steps are being taken to reunite him with family.
Two Accounts of One Case
ICE disputes that account. In a statement posted on X on November 10, the agency said a man claiming to be the boy’s uncle took him to the check-in. The uncle could not establish legal guardianship under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, or TVPRA. ICE therefore classified the boy as an unaccompanied alien child. The agency also said the boy was first brought into the United States with a man who claimed to be his father. That man had been removed to Mexico by Customs and Border Protection and had never been in ICE custody.
ICE also pointed to past policy. Its statement added: “let’s talk about the 450,000 unaccompanied children the Biden Administration lost or placed with unvetted sponsors.”
The lawmakers see the case differently. Their letter said: “Video footage appears to show the use of restraints on a child who seemed to pose no threat to those around him.” It also voiced concern about “the harm it may cause a young child who appeared for his required hearing.”
Local leaders have also spoken. Cody Petterson, a board trustee with the San Diego Unified School District, said it was unclear where the boy was held. He believed it might be Los Angeles. He said the boy was “certainly not with family or with a designated caregiver.” District Superintendent Fabi Bagula and other leaders wrote their own letter, warning that ICE’s actions put children at risk of setbacks in school, mental health problems and long-term instability.
Guerline Jozef, executive director of the nonprofit Haitian Bridge Alliance, said ICE did not give the father a chance to put legal guardianship in place before deporting him. She said, “We are living under a cloud of terror.” She called the detention “an excuse for [ICE] to remove the child and potentially put him in deportation proceedings.”
The backdrop is Temporary Protected Status. The Supreme Court allowed the Trump administration to end it for Haitians earlier this year. Congress created the humanitarian designation in 1990 after it had first been granted to Haitians following the 2010 earthquake. More than 350,000 Haitians live in the United States.
The two accounts diverge on what the check-in became. ICE describes a guardianship determination under TVPRA. The lawmakers describe a child placed in restraints and separated from his uncle. Both accounts come from the same afternoon.
ICE’s stated reason is a guardianship finding. ICE says the boy’s uncle could not establish legal guardianship under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, so the agency classified the boy as an unaccompanied minor. ICE then placed him in the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement to ensure his safety. ICE also says a man claiming to be the uncle brought the boy to the check-in. Lawmakers have questioned the basis for the action.
To recap, an 8-year-old Haitian boy was detained alone after an ICE appointment in San Diego. He lost Temporary Protected Status earlier this year. ICE says it placed him in federal refugee care because his uncle could not establish legal guardianship. Lawmakers and school leaders say the case may cause him harm. He remains in custody, and his future is unclear.
