SHAKOPEE, Minn. — A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to facilitate the return of a Nicaraguan man deported to the Central African Republic despite legal protections against removal to his home country, finding that federal authorities likely violated immigration regulations and constitutional due process requirements.
U.S. District Judge Jeffrey M. Bryan issued the Oct. 30 order granting preliminary relief to Kenis Lopez Gonzalez, a Nicaraguan national who had been living in Shakopee, Minnesota, before immigration agents detained him in January.
The administration has appealed the decision to the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals and requested a stay, arguing that the return order interferes with federal immigration enforcement and foreign policy.
Lopez Gonzalez arrived in the United States in 2022 after fleeing political persecution in Nicaragua. He subsequently established a construction business in Minnesota and received authorization to work while complying with immigration requirements.
In August 2024, an immigration judge granted him withholding of removal, protecting him from deportation to Nicaragua because of the danger he faced there.
That protection did not automatically prohibit removal to another country, but federal authorities remained subject to applicable procedural safeguards.
According to Bryan’s ruling, Lopez Gonzalez was detained Jan. 15 during Operation Metro Surge, a federal immigration enforcement operation involving U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and Customs and Border Protection.
Lopez Gonzalez was preparing to leave his Shakopee home when eight federal agents approached and questioned him about his immigration status.
He presented his work permit, Minnesota identification and documentation establishing his protection against removal to Nicaragua. Nevertheless, agents detained him and transported him to the Whipple Federal Building.
He was subsequently transferred through detention facilities in Texas and Louisiana, spending approximately seven months in federal immigration custody.
In August, immigration authorities placed Lopez Gonzalez and other detained men on a bus bound for an airport in Texas.
According to his declaration, the men were restrained at their wrists, ankles and waists and initially were not informed of their destination.
Lopez Gonzalez said he attempted to explain that he had legal protection against deportation and a pending habeas corpus petition.
“In the moment I tried to explain to them that first, I had protection,” he told the Minnesota Reformer. “Second, I had a habeas corpus pending. And third, they were violating my due process rights.”
He alleged that officers fired rubber bullets and pepper balls at men who refused to board the aircraft, causing injuries to his legs, chest and arms.
According to his account, officers forcibly removed the men from the bus, placed them in restrictive restraint devices and carried them onto the plane.
Lopez Gonzalez was deported Aug. 28 to Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic, a country where he had no personal connections or legal status.
In his ruling, Bryan described conditions in which Lopez Gonzalez remained dependent on outside assistance for basic necessities and feared leaving the guarded facility where he was staying.
The judge found that Lopez Gonzalez had demonstrated a likelihood of success on his claims involving due process and federal immigration regulations, as well as a risk of irreparable harm if he remained abroad.
Bryan ordered federal authorities to take reasonable steps to facilitate his return, including requesting authorization for his parole into the United States by 11 a.m. Nov. 6.
The order also required the government to arrange necessary travel documentation and take steps to restore Lopez Gonzalez to the position he would have occupied had he not been removed.
The administration challenged the ruling, arguing that requiring the government to negotiate his return from another sovereign country would interfere with diplomatic relations and executive authority over immigration enforcement.
Federal attorneys also cited Supreme Court proceedings involving third-country deportations, arguing that the district court should defer to the broader litigation.
The government filed its appeal Nov. 3, and the Eighth Circuit docketed the case Nov. 4 as No. 26-3276.
Lopez Gonzalez’s attorneys maintain that the government unlawfully detained and removed him without providing the procedural protections required under federal law.
Attorney Courtney Moran told MPR News that the legal team wanted Lopez Gonzalez restored to his previous circumstances.
“We’re asking for him to be placed back in the position that he was in before he was unlawfully arrested and then ultimately unlawfully removed,” Moran said.
As of Nov. 6, Lopez Gonzalez remained in the Central African Republic while the government sought to suspend the return order. Bryan had not yet ruled on the administration’s stay request, leaving the preliminary injunction in effect.
To comment please go to one of these social media platforms:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DavisVanguard
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/peoples-vanguard-of-davis-inc/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/davisvanguard/
X: https://x.com/davisvanguard
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/vanguardnewsgroup.bsky.social
Subscribe to the Vanguard News letters. To make a tax-deductible donation, please visit davisvanguard.org/donate or give directly through ActBlue. Your support will ensure that the vital work of the Vanguard continues.
