A federal immigration judge has denied asylum to the family of Liam Conejo Ramos, the five-year-old boy whose detention in Minnesota sparked protests in January. The family's lawyer, Danielle Molliver, said they are appealing against the ruling to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA).
The family, which includes Liam's 13-year-old brother and their parents, Adrian Conejo Arias and Erika Ramos, who is pregnant, said they were "very disappointed" by the decision. Molliver told the Minnesota Star Tribune: "They were hopeful, at the minimum, they would get their day in court and have an audience and present their testimony."
Liam and his father were detained in Minneapolis after returning from the child's preschool and were later taken to a federal detention facility in Dilley, Texas. A photograph of Liam wearing a bunny hat went viral, drawing widespread attention to the case. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) issued a statement saying the family had received "full due process" and a final removal order on February 19, describing the proceedings as regular.
Molliver's firm, Nwokocha & Operana, has until the end of April to submit supporting documents to the BIA. She said "every day is a struggle" for the family, adding: "It all depends on how long the BIA takes. They don't want to go back to Ecuador." She has requested that DHS consider "humanitarian factors and due process" in enforcing immigration law.
A spokesperson for Columbia Heights public school district said the decision would be appealed and expressed hope for a positive outcome. The detention occurred during one of the Trump administration's largest immigration crackdown campaigns, and a Guardian analysis found that ICE booked about 3,800 minors into family detention between January and October 2025. The wider operations in Minnesota led to thousands of arrests and the fatal shootings of two people.
