Judge blocks deportation of DoorDash driver shot by ICE in Austin

A US federal judge has temporarily blocked the deportation of the Venezuelan DoorDash driver shot by an ICE agent in Austin, Texas, his lawyer has announced.

US District Judge Orlando L. Garcia granted an emergency order on Tuesday (22 September) preventing the removal of Wilber Rafael Garces Perez, 28, and ordered him to appear in person at a hearing on 30 September. “That means Wilber cannot be deported in the meantime,” his immigration lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, wrote on Facebook after filing the federal suit (Fox News; Washington Examiner).

Garces Perez was shot on Sunday (20 September) while making deliveries and was later moved to the South Texas ICE Processing Center in Pearsall, Texas. The bullet is still lodged in his back, and his lawyer says he has a suspected fractured collarbone and was taken back to hospital after losing feeling down his left side (Washington Examiner; Geo News).

The Department of Homeland Security released a fact sheet on Tuesday disputing claims about his medical treatment. DHS says he entered illegally, had an expired work permit and faced a final removal order. Lincoln-Goldfinch says he entered legally under a Biden-era immigration programme with a valid work permit, and that he missed a hearing because the notice was sent to an old address (Washington Examiner; Fox News).

Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza wrote on Tuesday to DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin and ICE Director David Venturella asking that Garces Perez be allowed to remain pending investigation (Fox News).

Sources:

• Fox News: https://foxnews.com/us/federal-judge-temporarily-blocks-deportation-illegal-immigrant-shot-ice-austin-attorney-says
• Washington Examiner: https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/immigration/4738871/judge-pause-deportation-man-shot-ice-agent-texas/
• Geo News: https://www.geo.tv/latest/683369-doordash-driver-shot-by-ice-cannot-be-deported-yet-us-judge-rules