Citizen Wrongly Held in Florida Immigration Mix-Up

A young man from Georgia found himself in a confusing situation. Juan Carlos Lopez-Gomez, a 20-year-old, was driving into Florida for work. He was pulled over by the Florida Highway Patrol. He was then arrested for being an "unauthorized alien. " This was a mistake. He was born in the United States. The arrest happened because of a new Florida law. This law is supposed to stop undocumented immigrants from entering the state. A judge had temporarily blocked this law. But, Lopez-Gomez was still arrested under it. The judge later said there was no reason to charge him with entering Florida illegally. But, she couldn't release him because of an ICE hold. ICE holds are requests from Immigration and Customs Enforcement. They ask law enforcement to keep someone for up to 48 hours. This gives ICE time to take the person into custody. But, U. S. citizens should not be subject to these holds. Mistakes happen, though. Many U. S. citizens have been wrongly detained because of ICE holds. Lopez-Gomez was released the next evening. His family and supporters were happy. They had been working hard to get him out. The White House's deportation campaign has caused concerns. People worry about racial profiling and immigrants' rights. Judges are looking at the legality of these cases. President Trump has even threatened to send some U. S. citizens to offshore prisons. This is not legally possible. Lopez-Gomez appeared in court virtually. His mother showed his birth certificate to the judge. The judge confirmed it was real. ICE told Lopez-Gomez's relatives he would be released. The Department of Homeland Security is looking into what happened. Other agencies did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Florida's SB 4-C is the law that led to Lopez-Gomez's arrest. It penalizes illegal immigrants who enter the state after avoiding immigration inspection. The law was signed by Governor Ron DeSantis. It was temporarily blocked by a judge. An attorney called the situation "a series of horrors. " She said no one should have been arrested under this law, especially a U. S. citizen. The judge, prosecutor, sheriff, and jail were all following ICE's request. They were keeping Lopez-Gomez even though they knew he was a citizen.