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3d ago

Austin Lawmaker, Community Push for Release of Student Held by ICE After Traffic Stop

The case underscores fears about school enrollment losses that local leaders tie to stepped-up immigration enforcement.

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Luis Fernando Cabrera, 18, a senior at Northeast Early College High School in Austin was detained by federal immigration agents on May 1, chilling his classmates' excitement for the end of the school year. Cabrera played on his high school's varsity soccer team.

Overview

  • Friends and U.S. Rep. Greg Casar urged the release of 18-year-old Luis Fernando Cabrera at a school press event as his graduation approaches.
  • ICE is holding Cabrera at the Karnes County Immigration Processing Center while his immigration case moves forward, and no hearing date has been set.
  • Attorney Jim Harrington filed a habeas corpus petition seeking Cabrera’s release while he awaits an asylum decision, and a judge’s response is pending.
  • The detention followed a traffic stop where a Texas DPS trooper, trained under a 287(g) agreement, checked his status and referred him to ICE, a program that lets state officers act in certain federal immigration roles.
  • ICE promoted self-deportation with a $2,600 payment and a free flight, a stance the lawyer rejected as unrealistic given Cabrera’s school, work, and family ties in Austin.