Deportation Proceedings Against Honduran Immigrant Temporarily Stayed, After Dozens of Supporters Journey Hours to Federal Courthouse 

A federal judge in U.S. District Court in Manhattan extended her July 21 temporary restraining order protecting Gerson Turcios, a 23-year-old Honduran immigrant and Rhinebeck resident detained Friday by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, from deportation. 

The decision by Judge Ronnie Abrams will keep Turcios in federal custody at the Orange County Jail in Goshen for another week, allowing him and his legal team time to begin to try to reopen his immigration case, which his attorneys hope will allow him to remain in the country.

According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Turcios unlawfully entered the United States through Texas in December 2019 and was issued a notice to appear in immigration court. He was ultimately ordered removed from the country on Nov. 3, 2023.

The decision Wednesday was met with relief from the more than 30 friends, family members, and local employers who took the trip from Rhinebeck to Manhattan for the hearing to support Turcios’ case. Turcios did not attend the hearing.

“It’s a total win,” said Luciano Valdivia, owner of Market St Restaurant and Board President of the Rhinebeck Area Chamber of Commerce, speaking outside the courthouse to a crowd of supporters. Valdivia has helped lead the organizing effort around Turcios’s case. “This is what was hoped for,” he said. Many community members at the courthouse said the hearing’s outcome is a testament to the power of collective action and local support. 

Turcios was detained by ICE agents outside his home in Rhinebeck around 5 p.m. last Friday, according to a family member who witnessed the incident but has asked to remain anonymous. ICE reportedly came looking for someone else, but as Turcios returned home from work and pulled into the driveway, two agents approached his car, used a facial recognition device to confirm his identity, and then placed him in handcuffs.

The arrest galvanized the Rhinebeck community. The next day, neighbors organized to find legal representation and to raise money for Turcios’s defense. A SpotFund campaign launched on Sunday has raised more than $65,000, as of Wednesday night. As news of Wednesday’s hearing date spread, organizers quickly arranged a bus seating roughly 50 people to bring community members to the courthouse.

Just after sunrise, seven supporters boarded a coach bus in the parking lot of Tops Friendly Market in Rhinebeck, bound for the federal courthouse in Manhattan. Other supporters opted to take the train or drove to the city on their own. The bus group—made up of Turcios’s family, employers, and neighbors, along with community members eager to help—traveled together for the two-hour ride. They clustered near the front of the bus, many strangers before the ride commenced. 

At the center of the group sat Idania Williams, who describes Turcios as “like a brother” to her, though they are not related. As the bus drove south, Williams shared stories about Turcios’ life. Since he arrived in Rhinebeck in December 2019, he’s celebrated Christmases and birthdays with her family, and he passed his driver’s test with their help. “He was part of our family,” she said. The mood on the bus was nervous in anticipation but warm, filled with laughter, quiet resolve, and a sense of shared purpose.

For many, the trip felt like a small act of resistance, an antidote to the feeling of helplessness that has spread in some circles as a result of the federal government’s immigration crackdown. “I’ve been seeing the spread of terror in immigrant communities in the Hudson Valley,” said Ashwini Sukthankar, a labor organizer from Rhinecliff who rode the bus to the courthouse. “We just have to show up.”

Others echoed that sense of urgency. Isaac Hoey-Wasow, who attended Rhinebeck High School with Turcios but didn’t know him personally, said he had heard only good things from mutual friends—about Turcios’s work ethic, his dream of starting a landscaping business, and his desire to build a life in the United States after he left Honduras and walked alone to the Texas border. “I would be here no matter who it was because it’s for each other,” he said. “And if you’re able to step up to help someone who’s been treated unjustly, it’s the right thing to do.”

Kathryn Noelle Phillips, one of Turcios’s landscaping clients, said she grew concerned when he didn’t show up for work last Saturday. He has been helping her reseed the grass on her property after septic work and is always punctual, she said. “It wasn’t like him,” she said as she rode the bus. Turcios had worked for her for over a year, helping with everything from mowing the lawn and cleaning gutters to fixing her shower. She also noted his deep ecological knowledge and love of nature. Phillips found out about his arrest later that day, from a story in The Daily Catch. 

Many who traveled to the courthouse said that while they had followed the ICE raids and deportation cases across the country with growing alarm, Turcios’s detention brought the issue home and compelled them to act. “When it’s in your backyard, that gives you a better opportunity to do something that hopefully affects the situation you’re seeing,” said Jess Lurie, a Democratic political organizer, on her way to the hearing. 

In the courtroom, just after 11 a.m., Abrams acknowledged the emotional weight of the case and the outpouring of support from the community. “I fully appreciate how heartbreaking this must be for Turcios and his family,” Abrams said from the bench. She acknowledged the many letters submitted on Turcios’s behalf and said it was clear he is “loved in his community.”

But she also made clear the legal limitations of her role. “The law is clear,” she said. Federal law restricts the district court from staying the removal order. 

According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Turcios unlawfully entered the United States through Texas in December 2019 and was issued a notice to appear in immigration court. He was ultimately ordered removed from the country on Nov. 3, 2023.

During the hearing, Abrams asked why a motion to reopen the case had not already been filed, given that the original removal order was issued over 18 months ago. Gregory Copeland, one of Turcios’s attorneys, explained that the team had only just been granted access to their client hours earlier and had not yet had time to review the details and history of his case.

Immigration attorney Paul Grotas has since been retained to file a motion to reopen Turcios’s case with the Board of Immigration Appeals. According to Valdivia, Grotas met with Turcios via Zoom on Wednesday. 

For many in the room, the judge’s decision was a moment of cautious optimism. “It’s a short-term victory,” said Jenny Friedberg, who employed Turcios as a landscaper and has helped organize the support and fundraising effort for his case. Friedberg said she was relieved to know he won’t be moved, that he can have visitors and make phone calls. “We have time.” 

Some close friends and family members were disappointed not to see Turcios in person at the courthouse, as they had expected. “It’s kind of dehumanizing for him not to be here,” a close friend, Brendan Dougherty, said outside the courthouse after the hearing. Turcios had been planning to attend Dougherty’s birthday party on Saturday, the day after he was detained.

Even so, Dougherty said he’s been struck by the rapid and widespread response to the case. Local community members from both sides of the aisle have come together around this, asking ‘Why him?’ Dougherty said. 

On the bus ride home, U.S. Rep. Pat Ryan (D-18) called Leah Conklin, another organizer, to express his gratitude to the group and praise the local effort as a potential model for other communities confronting similar situations.

“We’re just gonna keep doing our work,” said Friedberg, who underscored the importance of continued community support and action. “I’m very energized.” 

The post Deportation Proceedings Against Honduran Immigrant Temporarily Stayed, After Dozens of Supporters Journey Hours to Federal Courthouse  first appeared on The Daily Catch.