'It's extremely cruel:' Sheboygan Falls mother of 4 detained by ICE during routine check-in
SHEBOYGAN FALLS, Wis. (CBS 58) -- A mother of four from Sheboygan Falls was detained by immigration agents after a routine check-in in Milwaukee on Tuesday, March 10. Elvira Benitez Suarez moved from Mexico to the United States 35 years ago, when she was 15 years old, as a survivor of sexual assault and domestic violence, according to attorney Marc Christopher. He described the situation as "the most egregious case" he's ever represented.
The United States is Benitez Suarez's home, according to her daughter, Crystal Aguilar. But in what's been described as an "unexpected development," she was detained by immigration agents. "There’s no legal basis for this. There's no need, there's no public safety purpose, and we have not yet gotten answers," explained immigration attorney Eloisa De León.
"There is no explanation. Honestly, it's extremely cruel." - Eloisa De León
In July of last year, Elvira was on a family vacation when they accidentally took the wrong exit, ending up in Canada. When they came back, Elvira and her husband were detained for six months, leaving her eldest daughter, Crystal, with the help of her 28-year-old sister to take care of the young siblings.
Elvira Benitez Suarez family
"Mentally and emotionally, it was very exhausting. Going from court to court and not having clear answers or clear outcomes. It was just pretty scary," shared Aguilar.
In December, an immigration judge conceded her cancellation of removal case as it was proven "her removal would cause exceptional and extremely unusual hardship to her two U.S. citizen children," shared De León. Elvira has no criminal history. Instead, she's described by her daughter as a very sweet, happy, and faithful woman.
Yet, in what De León called an "unusual" move by the U.S. government, the decision was appealed, and Elvira was detained as she was leaving a routine ICE check-in on Tuesday in Milwaukee.
"There’s no legal basis for this. There's no need, there's no public safety purpose, and we have not yet gotten answers," said De León.
Aguilar said she got a text from her mother as she was being detained, leaving her with a lot of unanswered questions.
During our interview, we found out Elvira had been moved from Indiana to Kentucky without notice.
"I mean, I do have a bit of peace knowing that, you know, she's been accounted for, so that I know at least where she is. We haven't heard from her yet. So, I mean, that still sucks... I'm just kind of in this unknown feeling, because I don't know what's going to happen. I don't know why. What was the reason for her having to be detained once again?" asked Aguilar.
"There's many things happening, and nobody's speaking up. Nothing's being done." - Crystal Aguilar
The family is now looking at legal avenues like habeas corpus, asking a court to review the detention of Elvira.
We reached out to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for a comment but have not heard back yet.