The federal government has signaled that it is seeking to detain five-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and his father Adrian Conejo Arias once again, according to their lawyer Danielle Molliver.
A Department of Justice attorney filed a notice of appeal Wednesday in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas San Antonio Division. Earlier this year, a judge granted a habeas corpus petition freeing the father and son from a detention center there.
Molliver said the filing is unusual and confirms her suspicion that the government “has been retaliatory towards the family from the beginning.”
She sites the government move to end the family-of-four’s asylum claims “so quickly,” she said.
The lawyer said she has filed at least a dozen habeas corpus petitions in the last few weeks and has won each case. She has not received notice of the government appealing any one of them, Molliver said.
“So it’s very unique and very strange, to be honest,” she added. “It’s very unclear why the government is investing so many resources to fight this family.”
She called the family Wednesday morning and “they’re devastated and confused,” Molliver said.
Lawyers had filed a habeas corpus petition and fought their detainment in the Dilley, Texas facility. Liam became ill and lost weight during his time there.
Federal Judge Fred Biery granted habeas relief on Jan. 31.
Molliver said she will connect with lawyers who practice federal litigation in Texas who will be able to represent Liam and Conejo Arias in this appeal case. The family, which also includes Liam’s mother Erika Ramos and brother Tadeo, is appealing an immigration judge’s decision in February to end their asylum claims.
MPR News reached out to DHS for comment but has not yet received a response.