The ACLU demands the US release and return a Dominican woman living legally in Puerto Rico

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — In late May, a 47-year-old woman from the Dominican Republic was detained by police in Puerto Rico after she entered a municipal building seeking a permit to sell ice cream on the beach to support herself.

Upon being turned over to federal agents, the Dominican woman presented her passport, driver’s license and work permits that proved she was living in the U.S. territory legally, her attorney Ángel Robles and the American Civil Liberties Union of Puerto Rico, said Monday.

Despite the documents presented, authorities recently transferred her to Texas as part of a federal crackdown on migrants living illegally in U.S. jurisdictions.

The woman, whose first name is Aracelis, has not been fully identified because she is a victim of domestic violence.

Aracelis is among hundreds of people who have been detained in Puerto Rico since large-scale arrests began in late January, surprising many in the U.S. territory that has long welcomed migrants.

Robles and the ACLU demanded Aracelis’ release and return to Puerto Rico.

“It’s outrageous,” Robles said in a phone interview. “No charges have been filed against her, and she is not in the system.”

Because her name does not appear in a federal database, Robles’ request for a bond hearing was denied. “This case is one of unspeakable abuse,” said Annette Martínez Orabona, the ACLU director in Puerto Rico.

The case has fueled already simmering anger against the administration of Puerto Rico Gov. Jenniffer González Colón and local authorities who have been working with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents to arrest those believed to be living illegally in the U.S. territory.

In a letter sent Monday to the governor and the island’s justice secretary, the ACLU accused Puerto Rico’s government of violating the Constitution and local laws by providing ICE and U.S. Homeland Security with confidential information on nearly 6,000 immigrants.

It also accused ICE of using that data to go on a “fishing expedition” that it called “arbitrary and abusive.”

A spokesman for Homeland Security Investigations did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In Puerto Rico, undocumented immigrants are allowed to open bank accounts and obtain a special driver’s license.

The ACLU in Puerto Rico also accused González Colón’s administration of not providing protocols to local government agencies for how to deal with such requests from the federal government.

The ACLU requested, among other things, that Puerto Rico’s government issue an executive order barring public agencies from collaborating with ICE subpoenas not accompanied by a court order.

A spokeswoman for the governor did not immediately return a message for comment.

From Jan. 26 to March 20, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents have arrested more than 200 people, the majority of them Dominican. Updated numbers were not immediately available.

By DÁNICA COTO
Associated Press