She Says She’s A U.S. Citizen. ICE Arrested Her Anyway

A 22-year-old woman from Maryland is being held at an ICE detention facility in Texas while her attorneys fight to prove she is a U.S. citizen and stop her removal from the country.

What’s Happening: Dulce Consuelo Diaz Morales was moved to Texas after being detained in Louisiana following her arrest by ICE.

• Her family says she was stopped by ICE agents while heading home from Taco Bell.
• Her attorneys say records show she was born in Maryland.

What’s Important: A federal judge has ordered that Diaz Morales cannot be removed from the United States while the case is still active.

What Her Lawyer Says: Attorney Victoria Slatton says ICE ignored documents showing Diaz Morales is a U.S. citizen.

“It is an indisputable fact that she was born inside the United States. I’ve seen her birth certificate. We have immunization records. We have multiple affidavits from people who were there at her birth,” Slatton said.

She said Diaz Morales was born at a hospital in Laurel, Maryland, and that hospital officials confirmed records exist but have not released them yet.

Court Action: U.S. District Judge Brendan Hurson ruled last week that Diaz Morales cannot be removed from the country during the case.

“Specifically, respondents, including all those acting for them or on their behalf, are enjoined from removing Petitioner Dulce Consuelo Diaz Morales from the United States or altering her legal status during the pendency of this action,” Hurson wrote.

Communication Issues: Slatton said she found out her client had been transferred to Texas through the ICE detainee locator and has not been able to speak with her.

Slatton says she has not been allowed to speak to Morales yet.

Federal Response: The Department of Homeland Security disputes Diaz Morales’s claim of U.S. citizenship.

Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said Diaz Morales “is not a U.S. citizen” and “did not provide a valid U.S. birth certificate or any evidence in support of her claim.”

McLaughlin said Diaz Morales was questioned by border patrol near the Arizona-Mexico border in 2023 and told authorities she was a Mexican citizen.

She also said ICE allows detainees access to legal counsel.

“Any allegation that ICE does not allow detainees to contact legal assistance is false,” McLaughlin said.

What’s Next: The case is expected to continue with additional court filings during the first week of the new year.