Lawyers of a firefighter in Oregon has been detained by the American border patrol agents While fighting Washington fire in Washington State He submitted a petition in the Federal Court on Friday asking the judge to order his release from the immigration detention facility.
Oregon’s statesman, Reagoprto Hernandez Hernandez, and other firefighters were part of the crew of 44 people fighting a fire in the Olympic National Forest on August 27 when the agents took them in reservation during multi -agent criminal investigations in the contractors who were working.
Lawyers at the Innovation Law Laboratory said during a press conference His arrest was illegal The policies of the US Ministry of Security, which says that the immigration application should not be made in sites where emergency responses occur.
Bear Gulch, one of the largest fire in the state, burned 29 square miles (75 square kilometers) by Friday and was 9 % content.
The border patrol at that time said that the workers were illegally in the United States until they were detained. The federal authorities have not provided information about the investigation of contractors.
Lawyer Rodrigo Fernandez-Poutiga said they had made a petition in favor of appearing in front of the appearance and asked for a temporary restriction that seeks to release the man from the northwestern ice detention center in Takoma, Washington.
The Minister of Internal Security, Tricia McLeulin, said in an e -mail to Associated Press that the two men were firefighters – they were working in support to reduce firewood records.
She said, “The response to firefighting remained without interruption all the time.” “The American border patrol actions have not prevented or interfered with any individuals who actively participate in firefighting efforts.” A border patrol spokesman declined to comment, saying they did not comment on active or suspended litigation.
After Hernandez was detained in August, his lawyers were unable to locate him for 48 hours, causing distress to his family, said Fernandez-Ortega. He has been in the Takoma facility since then.
His lawyer said that Hernandez, 23, was the son of migrant agricultural workers. He grew up in Oregon, Washington and California while traveling to work. He moved to Oregon three years ago and started working as a wild firefighter.
His lawyer said that this was his third season, which works as a firefighter in Al -Barari, “to carry out the arduous and dangerous task of lowering trees and cleansing the vegetation to manage the spread of forest fires and protecting homes, communities and resources.”
Hernandez obtained a U-VISA certificate from the US Public Prosecutor’s Office in Oregon in 2017 and submitted his U-Visa request with American citizenship and immigration services the following year. U-VISA has been created by Congress to protect victims of serious crimes who help federal investigators.
His lawyers said he had been waiting since 2018 to the Immigration Agency to take a decision on his request and should be free during the operation.