In a late-night ruling on 28 January, U.S. District Judge Katherine Menendez issued a temporary restraining order preventing Immigration and Customs Enforcement from deporting Adrian Conejo and his five-year-old son Liam, whose arrest outside a Minneapolis preschool sparked viral outrage. The pair fled political violence in Ecuador in 2024 and have asylum claims pending, but were swept up in Metro Surge raids.
Footage of agents escorting Liam—still wearing a Spider-Man backpack—prompted widespread condemnation and comparisons to the 2018 family-separation crisis. Judge Menendez found that DHS may have violated due-process obligations by scheduling a deportation flight before the family’s credible-fear interview was completed. The order will remain in effect until a full merits hearing next month.
For mobility stakeholders the case illustrates the legal volatility around humanitarian claims under the current administration. Companies employing humanitarian parolees or asylum seekers should ensure workers carry copies of receipt notices (Form I-797C) and have immigration counsel on call. The ruling also signals federal courts’ willingness to scrutinize expedited-removal practices, potentially slowing future removals and creating a patchwork of injunctions that mobility teams must track.
![Federal Judge Halts Deportation of Ecuadorian Father and 5-Year-Old Son in High-Profile Minnesota Case]()
Amid this turbulence, VisaHQ’s U.S. immigration portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-states/) supplies real-time alerts, document checklists, and one-on-one support that can help both employers and affected families navigate EAD applications, humanitarian parole renewals, and other status-related filings—streamlining processes when every day counts.
If the TRO becomes permanent, Liam and his father could be released into community supervision, opening the door to work authorization (EAD) within 180 days. Employers in labor-scarce sectors may eventually benefit, but only if they maintain compliant I-9 processes and monitor the case’s outcome.
Advocates argue the decision may influence other family deportation cases nationwide, forcing DHS to tighten procedural safeguards or face more litigation—adding yet another layer of unpredictability for global mobility planners.
Footage of agents escorting Liam—still wearing a Spider-Man backpack—prompted widespread condemnation and comparisons to the 2018 family-separation crisis. Judge Menendez found that DHS may have violated due-process obligations by scheduling a deportation flight before the family’s credible-fear interview was completed. The order will remain in effect until a full merits hearing next month.
For mobility stakeholders the case illustrates the legal volatility around humanitarian claims under the current administration. Companies employing humanitarian parolees or asylum seekers should ensure workers carry copies of receipt notices (Form I-797C) and have immigration counsel on call. The ruling also signals federal courts’ willingness to scrutinize expedited-removal practices, potentially slowing future removals and creating a patchwork of injunctions that mobility teams must track.
Amid this turbulence, VisaHQ’s U.S. immigration portal (https://www.visahq.com/united-states/) supplies real-time alerts, document checklists, and one-on-one support that can help both employers and affected families navigate EAD applications, humanitarian parole renewals, and other status-related filings—streamlining processes when every day counts.
If the TRO becomes permanent, Liam and his father could be released into community supervision, opening the door to work authorization (EAD) within 180 days. Employers in labor-scarce sectors may eventually benefit, but only if they maintain compliant I-9 processes and monitor the case’s outcome.
Advocates argue the decision may influence other family deportation cases nationwide, forcing DHS to tighten procedural safeguards or face more litigation—adding yet another layer of unpredictability for global mobility planners.
