A US federal judge has issued a stark ultimatum to the Trump administration, granting it just three weeks to find a solution for a Honduran college student it wrongfully deported in violation of a court order.
A 'Tragic and Preventable' Mistake
US District Judge Richard Stearns, sitting in Boston, imposed the 21-day deadline after a government lawyer apologised for what was described as an 'amalgam of errors.' The case centres on Any Lucia López Belloza, a 19-year-old freshman at Babson College in Massachusetts.
López Belloza, who was brought to the United States by her mother at age eight while seeking asylum, was arrested on 20 November at Boston's Logan Airport. She was attempting to travel to her family home in Texas to surprise them for the Thanksgiving holiday.
Court Order Ignored as Student is Rushed to Honduras
Her legal team swiftly challenged her detention, and a judge issued an order on 21 November barring her deportation or transfer out of Massachusetts for 72 hours. However, by the time that order was issued, immigration officials had already moved López Belloza to Texas.
She was deported to Honduras the very next day, 22 November, and remains there with her grandparents. An officer with Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) later admitted to failing to properly flag the court order, mistakenly believing it no longer applied once she was outside Massachusetts.
Judge Proposes Solutions and Sets Deadline
In his ruling on Friday, Judge Stearns, who was appointed by President Bill Clinton, acknowledged the jurisdictional complexities but stated the government retained the power to fix its error. He proposed the 'simplest solution' would be for the US State Department to issue López Belloza a student visa.
The alternative, he warned, would be for the court to order the administration to arrange her return, with a threat of holding the government in contempt if it refused. The Justice Department has declined to comment on the ongoing case.
Judge Stearns gave the Trump administration 21 days to inform the court of how it intends to proceed and 'rectify the mistake,' emphasising the need for justice in a situation that 'ended badly for Any.'
