Migrant released from ICE custody with help from GOP lawmaker

(NewsNation) — A 25-year-old Mexican citizen who had been in Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention for the past two months was released this week after receiving assistance from a Republican lawmaker in Louisiana.

Paola Clouatre was released from an ICE detention facility in Louisiana after officials who work with Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., requested her release last week. The New York Times and Associated Press, citing emails related to the case, reported that an immigration attorney halted Clouatre’s deportation order before Kenendy's office petitioned for her release, which allowed her to return to her family.

ICE officers detained Clouatre in late May at a scheduled appointment related to her green card application as part of her seeking permanent resident status, the Times reported.

Clouatre is married to Adrian Clouatre, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran with whom she has two children.

This week, Adrian Clouatre received an email from Christy Tate, a constituent services representative in Kennedy’s office, to confirm his wife had been released from ICE custody.

“I’m so happy for you and your family,” the email read, according to the New York Times. “God is truly great. We will continue to keep you, your family and others that are experiencing the same issues in our prayers.”

A spokesman for Kennedy did not immediately respond to a request for comment from NewsNation on Thursday about the release.

Clouatre's release came after her husband worked with immigration officials, hoping to have her deportation halted, the Associated Press reported. Clouatre entered the United States seeking asylum with her mother more than 10 years ago. She married her husband last year, then learned that ICE had issued an order for her deportation in 2018 after her mother missed an immigration hearing, the AP reported.

However, after Kennedy’s office intervened, Clouatre was released on recognizance Monday. Her attorney, Carey Holliday, told NewsNation affiliate KLFY that Clouatre could return to her family and would likely obtain her green card.

“I’m very relieved ICE has been able to see the light and let this person, who didn’t deserve to be detained, be released so she can address her problems and take care of her family,” Holliday said.

An immigration judge agreed to issue a stay of the removal order last week to reexamine the case, KLFY reported.

In a statement provided to NewsNation on Thursday, an ICE spokesperson confirmed the release but said that members of Congress “have no sway” on who ICE arrests, detains or places in immigration proceedings.

“DHS enforces the law, period,” the spokesperson said.

The Associated Press reported that Kennedy’s office had been “instrumental” in aiding the release.

Kennedy has previously had mixed responses to ICE activity. Earlier this month, he posted on his Facebook page that “Illegal immigration is illegal – duh,” the AP reported. However, in April, the Louisiana lawmaker had been critical of the Trump administration for mistakenly deporting Salvadorian national Kilmar Abrego Garcia to his home country.

“This was a screwup,” Kennedy told NBC News in April. “The administration won’t admit it, but it was a screwup. Mr. Garcia was not supposed to be sent to El Salvador, and he was sent to El Salvador. …None of us want mistakes.”

The Associated Press contributed reporting to this story