Judge Orders Release of 5-Year-Old and Father Detained by ICE

U.S. District Judge Fred Biery, appointed by former President Bill Clinton, issued an order on Saturday mandating the release of five‑year‑old Liam Conejo Ramos and his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, who had been held at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Texas. The children were detained after ICE officers intercepted the family in a Minneapolis suburb on Jan. 20, 2026. Biery’s ruling criticized the Trump administration’s daily deportation quota—reported at 3,000 arrests per day—and characterized the operation as “ill‑conceived” because it “traumatizes children.” The decision follows prior complaints about the center’s conditions, which houses about 1,100 people, and a 2025 ICE report noting that it held 400 children more than the 20‑day limit. Congressional delegates Joaquin Castro and Jasmine Crockett visited the facility on Jan. 28.