Lucia Lopez Belloza, a 19-year-old college freshman, faced an unexpected and distressing situation when she attempted to fly from Boston to Texas for Thanksgiving. The soon-to-be business major intended to give her family the surprise of their lives when she flew home for Thanksgiving—she’d completed her first semester! On November 20, she was at her home airport, Boston Logan International Airport when authorities confronted her. They told her that something was wrong with her boarding pass.
A federal judge granted an emergency order the day after Lucia’s arrest. This order prevented the Federal government from deporting her for at least 72 hours, however, despite this ruling she was nevertheless deported to Honduras. This move was a direct violation of the unambiguous court order. It opened a necessary dialogue about transparency in legal defense processes and treatment of low-risk offenders.
Lucia had just gone through security at the airport when ICE agents came from behind and arrested her on their behalf. Her lawyer, Todd Pomerleau, said he was deeply troubled by the government’s action. He pointed out that Lucia is being held accountable for reported problems from 10 years ago that she doesn’t even have knowledge of. He similarly lampooned officials for their inability to cite a shred of evidence to back those assertions.
“They’re holding her responsible for something they claim happened a decade ago that she’s completely unaware of and not showing any of the proof,” – Todd Pomerleau
At this moment, Lucia is still in Honduras living with her grandparents. She’s well out of range for her planned surprise attack on her relatives down in Texas. She had been looking forward to reporting her college adventures to her parents and younger sisters over the Thanksgiving holiday. The sudden turn of events comes as a deep disappointment to her family and supporters. They are currently working through the legal and procedural inconsistencies at play in her case.
As discussions continue regarding the legal framework surrounding immigration and deportation, Lucia Lopez Belloza’s case underscores the complexities faced by individuals navigating these systems. Given that there are court orders already in place protecting their well-being, this event calls into question how such situations have been handled.