Overview
- Lorenzo Thompson, a Southwest Airlines flight attendant, was detained by ICE at Nashville International Airport on Tuesday, July 14, and remains in federal custody pending immigration proceedings.
- DHS and ICE say Thompson entered from Jamaica on April 17, 2021, on a six-month visa that expired in October 2021 and that he overstayed that authorization.
- Friends, a GoFundMe organizer and union co-workers say Thompson holds employment authorization and has a pending asylum application while noting he has no known criminal record.
- TWU Local 556 is coordinating with Thompson’s family, his attorney and the union’s legal counsel and supporters have raised funds for legal fees, while Southwest Airlines has not issued a public comment.
- Immigration lawyers and reporting note both accounts can be factually consistent because a person can overstay an initial admission and later gain work authorization through a pending asylum case, and the case raises questions about how enforcement, transparency and worker protections play out at transport hubs.