The family of the 2-year-old U.S. citizen who was deported with her mother to Honduras last month, voluntarily dismissed its lawsuit against the Trump administration, one of the attorneys who represents the family told ABC News.
“Given the traumatizing experiences the families have been through, they are taking a step back to have full discussions about all their options, the safety and well-being of their children, and the best ways to proceed so the harms they have suffered can be fully addressed,” attorney Gracie Willis said.
“They are voluntarily dismissing this case to give themselves space and time to consider all the options that are available to them,” she added.
Last month, a federal judge said he had a strong suspicion that the Trump administration deported a 2-year-old U.S. citizen to Honduras “with no meaningful process.”
The U.S. citizen, identified in the filings as “V.M.L,” was initially detained with her mother and sister, who both lacked legal status to be in the United States, at a routine immigration check-in in New Orleans last month. After the father of the 2-year-old learned that his family was detained, his lawyer called immigration officials to inform them that V.M.L. is a U.S. citizen and could not be deported, according to court documents.
Before the court responded to the habeas petition and a motion for a temporary restraining order, the 2-year-old, along with her mother and sister, were deported to Honduras, according to court filings.
In response to the motion, lawyers with the Department of Justice said it was in the best interest of the minor that she remain in legal custody of her mother and that she was not at “risk of irreparable harm because she is a U.S. citizen.”
U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty had scheduled a hearing in the case for May 16.
“The ACLU dropped its lawsuit on the false claims that DHS deported a U.S. citizen,” Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement on Saturday.
“The truth is, and has always been, that the mother — who was in the country illegally — chose to bring her 2-year-old with her to Honduras when she was removed. The narrative that DHS is deporting American children is false and irresponsible,” she added.
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