In a first of its kind lawsuit involving children, a Honduran mother and her two young children have sued the US government over their arrest outside a Texas courthouse, alleging violations of constitutional rights. The family, who legally entered the US using the CBP One app, is detained at the Dilley immigration processing center and is fighting for release, according to the news agency AP.Filed in Texas, the lawsuit argues that their arrest violated the Fourth Amendment’s protection against unlawful searches and seizures and the Fifth Amendment’s guarantee of due process. According to their legal team, led by Columbia Law School professor Elora Mukherjee, the family complied fully with immigration procedures before being taken into custody.The mother and her children fled Honduras in October 2024 following death threats. After being paroled into the US by the department of homeland security, they were scheduled to appear before an immigration court in Los Angeles on May 29. But immediately after the judge dismissed their case, ICE agents allegedly arrested them outside the courtroom, placing them in expedited removal, a fast-track deportation process. Their lawyers argue the arrest was traumatic, especially for the 6-year-old boy, a leukemia patient who missed a vital check-up due to the detention. “He’s pale, bruising, and suffering bone pain,” Mukherjee said, adding that the boy urinated on himself in fear after an officer exposed a firearm.Though their appeal is pending, the family could be deported any day. Advocates say the case highlights growing concerns about the Trump administration’s continuation of aggressive immigration enforcement, particularly at courthouses.“This family followed every rule,” said attorney Kate Gibson Kumar of the Texas civil rights project. “With young children involved, there must be protections.”The department of homeland security has not commented. The government has until July 1 to respond to the lawsuit.
