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US-born man held by ICE despite showing birth certificate in court has been released

By
FOX Local
Immigration
Published April 18, 2025 3:07 PM MST
Published April 18, 2025 3:07 PM MST
article

FILE-US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents detain a suspect during a multi-agency targeted enforcement operation in Lyons, Illinois on Jan. 26, 2025. (Christopher Dilts/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The Brief

    • Juan Carlos Lopez-Gomez, a Georgia resident, was arrested while in Florida.
    • He showed a judge his birth certificate to confirm his U.S. citizenship but was still held in jail.
    • Lopez-Gomez was released and has an upcoming court appearance.

An American citizen who was held in jail on suspicion of being an "unauthorized alien" has been freed. 

Who is Juan Carlos Lopez-Gomez?

The backstory:

Juan Carlos Lopez-Gomez was born in Grady County, Georgia but was arrested on April 16 by a Florida Highway Patrol trooper when the car he was riding in was pulled over for speeding, CNN reported. 

The 20-year-old man was held at a local jail despite a judge being shown his birth certificate in court at the request of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.  The 20-year-old man resides in Cairo, Georgia but traveled into Florida for a construction job.

RELATED: Federal judge warns of criminal contempt for Trump officials in deportation dispute

Florida’s undocumented immigrant legislation 

Local perspective:

Newsweek reported that Juan Carlos Lopez-Gomez was detained for suspicion of violating legislation signed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis that makes it illegal for undocumented immigrants over the age of 18 to "knowingly" travel into Florida after avoiding inspection by immigration officers. 

According to the news outlet Florida Phoenix, Lopez-Gomez appeared in court virtually before a judge on April 17. Leon County Judge LaShawn Riggans received a copy of his birth certificate and Social Security card to prove his U.S. citizenship.

After his release Lopez-Gomez told Florida Phoenix "I feel fine leaving that place. I felt bad in there. They didn't give us anything to eat all day yesterday."

He is scheduled to have a court appearance on May 6 in Leon County, Florida. 

In a separate case, the Trump administration mistakenly deported Kilmar Abrego Garcia to an El Salvador prison, but does not intend to return him to the U.S. despite a Supreme Court ruling that the administration must "facilitate" his release.

The Source: Information for this story was provided by Newsweek, CNN, and Florida Phoenix, which received comments from Juan Carlos Lopez-Gomez.  This story was reported from Washington, D.C. 

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