ST. PAUL – Carlos Urrutia, a Minnesotan who was abruptly taken from a court hearing last Thursday by agents with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with unnecessary force was scheduled to be deported on August 1. He has been successfully granted a delay of deportation. His immigration lawyer has confirmed that he will not be deported today or this week. Faith group ISAIAH Minnesota will continue to give vital updates on his status as they are able.

ThinkProgress published a story on Carlos that includes a video of ICE agents forcefully grabbing Carlos. The agents initially refusing to identify themselves, produce an arrest warrant, or show a badge. All of this was done in front of family members and fellow ISAIAH faith leaders who accompanied him to a court hearing for support. They asked questions well within their rights, and the agents responded by physically grabbing, pushing and pulling leaders out of the way.

Please click here to read the story.

Carlos is a husband, father of three children, and faith leader at his Roman Catholic congregation where he advocates for love, justice and redemption for all. He has been a resident in the U.S. for 25 years and a Minnesotan for the majority of that time.

“Like any other person, Carlos deserves dignity and respect, and an opportunity to thrive,” said Catalina Morales, lead organizer with ISAIAH Minnesota. “Like many, his past hasn’t been perfect, but imperfection should never be a reason to mistreat or deny the humanity or sanctity of anyone. Nothing is fair or just about how we as a nation have chosen to treat our immigrant neighbors, or how Carlos has been treated.”

“The hard-hearted deportation machine — ICE — has long been an institution of callous, mean and plainly evil acts of violent separation of immigrant families who have been scapegoated and used as political footballs by every level of government,” added Morales. “This video is a depiction of one of the tens of thousands of immigrants who are stripped of decency and respect.”

###