“We will never get back the time that has been taken from us,” said Desiree Miller, whose spouse, Catalina “Xochitl” Santiago, is a Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) recipient recently detained by immigration authorities. She spoke at a Thursday press conference.
Even though her legal team and family insist she is wrongfully detained, a senior Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official told Newsweek in an email Thursday: “Her criminal history includes charges for trespassing, possession of narcotics and drug paraphernalia.”
Why It Matters
Santiago’s detention comes during an immigration crackdown under the Trump administration. President Donald Trump has promised the largest mass deportation operation in U.S. history. Immigrants living in the country illegally—and even those with valid documents like green cards and visas—have been detained.
Newsweek has reported many cases of green-card and visa holders caught up in these raids and arrests.
What To Know
In 2012, then-President Barack Obama started the DACA program, which offers protections and work authorization to millions of undocumented residents who came to the U.S. as children. The program has been in legal and political uncertainty for years.
DACA recipients, often called Dreamers, can legally live and work in the U.S. DACA does not give a path to permanent residency or citizenship, so recipients are still vulnerable to policy changes or legal challenges. DHS attorneys have said DACA protections do not apply to detention decisions.
Santiago was arrested by federal immigration agents on August 3 at El Paso International Airport while leaving for a work trip with the nonprofit La Mujer Obrera. DHS said she was detained because of criminal charges from five years ago.
Luis Cortes, an attorney for Santiago, accused the Trump administration of giving a “shifting narrative” to justify her arrest. He called it part of a bigger “shoot first, aim later” approach.
Cortes said the government’s actions are “sloppy haphazard enforcement across the country” and added, “This isn’t law enforcement, this is lawlessness cloaked in a badge.”
Santiago’s attorneys deny the paraphernalia charges. Cortes said during the press conference: “There are no ongoing criminal charges against her. Her only conviction is a trespassing conviction from a peaceful civil disobedience action.”
Santiago remains in federal custody after her first hearing on August 27 at El Paso Immigration Court. The judge allowed DHS more time to respond and scheduled the next hearing for September 10.
Miller told Newsweek that her message to the administration and the public is: “Xochitl should be free. We want Xochitl free and we want everyone who has been taken from their family and detained to be free.”
She added that the “rhetoric about immigrants being criminals” and “monsters” is a way to ignore the fact that detained people are human beings.
Santiago’s detention has led to protests and legal challenges. Supporters gathered outside the Service Processing Center in El Paso during a court hearing to demand her release.
From ICE custody on August 10, Santiago described poor conditions, including inadequate medical care and bad water.
What People Are Saying
Santiago’s brother, Jose, said during the press conference: “We depend on each other to navigate life, both in school and outside, adapting to whatever comes our way as young immigrant children. She has been inspiring and a role model. Many in the community have benefited from her generosity and kindness. When I heard about her detention, it broke me. My family was devastated and worried.”
A senior DHS official told Newsweek Thursday: “Illegal aliens who claim to be DACA recipients are not automatically protected from deportation. DACA does not give legal status in this country. Any illegal alien who is a DACA recipient may face arrest and deportation, including if they’ve committed a crime.”
Desiree Miller said: “We have to go through the legal process, but in the meantime, those are days of our lives we will never get back. Because of a piece of paper, it decides whether you get to live in peace with the people you love.”
Santiago wrote from ICE custody on August 10: “To face the criminalization of immigrants and see the inside of the for-profit prison system, where every move is watched, where we are far from our loved ones, where lights are on day and night, and dinner is a frozen ham and cheese sandwich. When people get sick, they are made fun of, and nurses only give water. The water here stinks, yet we still drink it.”
What Happens Next
Santiago will stay in ICE custody while her removal proceedings continue. The next hearing is scheduled for September 10.
A GoFundMe created for her has raised more than $82,000 as of Thursday.
