The arrest of an 18-year-old asylum seeker from Massachusetts, who’s now being held at the Cumberland County Jail in Portland, has raised questions about how the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown is playing out in Maine.
Zeneyda Barrera was arrested by local police in Lynn, Massachusetts, early Monday morning. Her court-appointed lawyer said neighbors heard an argument between her and her younger brother, reportedly over a cell phone, and called the police. Barrera was charged with a misdemeanor assault.
Attorney Patrick Callahan said the incident was minor, the kind of fight that siblings often have. She has no criminal record and has never been arrested. The local district attorney agrees that Barrera should be allowed to enroll in a youth diversion program.
A judge in Massachusetts then ordered her release. Callahan said Barrera was preparing to sit in the audience of the courtroom to speak with someone from the diversion program. Officers took her to the lockup area of the courthouse.
“She was then taken into custody immediately by ICE agents, who were there waiting with a detainer for her,” Callahan said.
Because defendants in immigration court are not entitled to an attorney, Callahan said he’s advised the Barrera family to seek the services of an immigration lawyer.
And Callahan said he hopes that someone takes a closer look at the case, which he described as a “great miscarriage of justice.”
“She had legal status. She had a work permit. She was a high school student at Lynn English High School. She was working when she wasn’t in school. She was doing everything the right way, and a snap between siblings is not something that should get you held in custody, being held without any sort of bond,” he said.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, did not return a request for comment about this case. And Callahan said he’s not sure exactly why Barrera was booked at the Cumberland County Jail. He said it’s possible there wasn’t enough space at the jail in Massachusetts where people in federal custody are often held. But in the past, the Cumberland County Jail has received people in ICE custody from other New England states.
