Judge orders 2-year-old released from ICE custody
A federal judge ordered a 2-year-old released from ICE custody, part of a series of Minnesota rulings during Operation Metro Surge that have blocked or limited rapid deportations of children seized in the raids. Similar emergency habeas orders — including one requiring ICE to release 5-year-old Liam Conejo Ramos and his father and barring their removal by a court-set deadline — have targeted individual cases and whole family units, providing case-specific relief rather than a broad injunction against the operation.
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📊 Relevant Data
Undocumented immigrants had a property crime arrest rate of 38.5 per 100,000 compared to 165.2 per 100,000 for U.S.-born citizens in recent data. ([U.S. House of Representatives](https://docs.house.gov/meetings/JU/JU01/20250122/117827/HHRG-119-JU01-20250122-SD004.pdf)) ([U.S. House of Representatives](https://docs.house.gov/meetings/JU/JU01/20250122/117827/HHRG-119-JU01-20250122-SD004.pdf)) ([U.S. House of Representatives](https://docs.house.gov/meetings/JU/JU01/20250122/117827/HHRG-119-JU01-20250122-SD004.pdf)) ([U.S. House of Representatives](https://docs.house.gov/meetings/JU/JU01/20250122/117827/HHRG-119-JU01-20250122-SD004.pdf)) ([U.S. House of Representatives](https://docs.house.gov/meetings/JU/JU01/20250122/117827/HHRG-119-JU01-20250122-SD004.pdf)) ([U.S. House of Representatives](https://docs.house.gov/meetings/JU/JU01/20250122/117827/HHRG-119-JU01-20250122-SD004.pdf)) ([U.S. House of Representatives](https://docs.house.gov/meetings/JU/JU01/20250122/117827/HHRG-119-JU01-20250122-SD004.pdf)) ([U.S. House of Representatives](https://docs.house.gov/meetings/JU/JU01/20250122/117827/HHRG-119-JU01-20250122-SD004.pdf)) ([U.S. House of Representatives](https://docs.house.gov/meetings/JU/JU01/20250122/117827/HHRG-119-JU01-20250122-SD004.pdf)) ([U.S. House of Representatives](https://docs.house.gov/meetings/JU/JU01/20250122/117827/HHRG-119-JU01-20250122-SD004.pdf))
Undocumented Immigrant Offending Rate Lower Than U.S.-Born Citizens — U.S. House of Representatives
ICE violated at least 96 court orders in Minnesota since January 1, 2026, during Operation Metro Surge. ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Metro_Surge)) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Metro_Surge)) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Metro_Surge)) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Metro_Surge)) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Metro_Surge)) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Metro_Surge)) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Metro_Surge)) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Metro_Surge)) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Metro_Surge)) ([Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Metro_Surge))
Operation Metro Surge — Wikipedia
In 61 challenges to immigrant detention in Minnesota last week, 60 succeeded, blocking detentions or removals. ([MS NOW](https://www.ms.now/news/minnesota-judges-nearly-shut-out-doj-in-a-week-of-immigrant-detention-hearings)) ([MS NOW](https://www.ms.now/news/minnesota-judges-nearly-shut-out-doj-in-a-week-of-immigrant-detention-hearings)) ([MS NOW](https://www.ms.now/news/minnesota-judges-nearly-shut-out-doj-in-a-week-of-immigrant-detention-hearings)) ([MS NOW](https://www.ms.now/news/minnesota-judges-nearly-shut-out-doj-in-a-week-of-immigrant-detention-hearings)) ([MS NOW](https://www.ms.now/news/minnesota-judges-nearly-shut-out-doj-in-a-week-of-immigrant-detention-hearings)) ([MS NOW](https://www.ms.now/news/minnesota-judges-nearly-shut-out-doj-in-a-week-of-immigrant-detention-hearings)) ([MS NOW](https://www.ms.now/news/minnesota-judges-nearly-shut-out-doj-in-a-week-of-immigrant-detention-hearings)) ([MS NOW](https://www.ms.now/news/minnesota-judges-nearly-shut-out-doj-in-a-week-of-immigrant-detention-hearings)) ([MS NOW](https://www.ms.now/news/minnesota-judges-nearly-shut-out-doj-in-a-week-of-immigrant-detention-hearings)) ([MS NOW](https://www.ms.now/news/minnesota-judges-nearly-shut-out-doj-in-a-week-of-immigrant-detention-hearings))
Minnesota judges nearly shut out DOJ in a week of immigrant detention hearings — MS NOW
From 2020 to 2024, over 81,000 new immigrants moved to Minnesota, making immigration the primary driver of population change. ([Minnesota Chamber of Commerce](https://www.mnchamber.com/blog/immigration-became-leading-component-population-growth-minnesota-decade)) ([Minnesota Chamber of Commerce](https://www.mnchamber.com/blog/immigration-became-leading-component-population-growth-minnesota-decade)) ([Minnesota Chamber of Commerce](https://www.mnchamber.com/blog/immigration-became-leading-component-population-growth-minnesota-decade)) ([Minnesota Chamber of Commerce](https://www.mnchamber.com/blog/immigration-became-leading-component-population-growth-minnesota-decade)) ([Minnesota Chamber of Commerce](https://www.mnchamber.com/blog/immigration-became-leading-component-population-growth-minnesota-decade)) ([Minnesota Chamber of Commerce](https://www.mnchamber.com/blog/immigration-became-leading-component-population-growth-minnesota-decade)) ([Minnesota Chamber of Commerce](https://www.mnchamber.com/blog/immigration-became-leading-component-population-growth-minnesota-decade)) ([Minnesota Chamber of Commerce](https://www.mnchamber.com/blog/immigration-became-leading-component-population-growth-minnesota-decade)) ([Minnesota Chamber of Commerce](https://www.mnchamber.com/blog/immigration-became-leading-component-population-growth-minnesota-decade)) ([Minnesota Chamber of Commerce](https://www.mnchamber.com/blog/immigration-became-leading-component-population-growth-minnesota-decade))
Immigration became the leading component of population growth in Minnesota this decade — Minnesota Chamber of Commerce
Over 244,000 Ecuadorians have requested asylum in the US since 2021, driven by economic hardship and a surge in violence in Ecuador. ([AULABLOG](https://aulablog.net/2025/04/09/thousands-fled-ecuador-since-2020)) ([AULABLOG](https://aulablog.net/2025/04/09/thousands-fled-ecuador-since-2020)) ([AULABLOG](https://aulablog.net/2025/04/09/thousands-fled-ecuador-since-2020)) ([AULABLOG](https://aulablog.net/2025/04/09/thousands-fled-ecuador-since-2020)) ([AULABLOG](https://aulablog.net/2025/04/09/thousands-fled-ecuador-since-2020)) ([AULABLOG](https://aulablog.net/2025/04/09/thousands-fled-ecuador-since-2020)) ([AULABLOG](https://aulablog.net/2025/04/09/thousands-fled-ecuador-since-2020)) ([AULABLOG](https://aulablog.net/2025/04/09/thousands-fled-ecuador-since-2020)) ([AULABLOG](https://aulablog.net/2025/04/09/thousands-fled-ecuador-since-2020)) ([AULABLOG](https://aulablog.net/2025/04/09/thousands-fled-ecuador-since-2020))
Why Have Hundreds of Thousands Fled Ecuador Since 2020? — AULABLOG
📌 Key Facts
- This reporting concerns a different case than earlier coverage of a 2‑year‑old: it involves 5‑year‑old Liam Conejo Ramos and his father.
- A federal judge ordered ICE to affirmatively release Liam and his father from detention by a specified Tuesday deadline and barred their removal while their case proceeds.
- The order bars removal of both the child and the father, signaling judicial scrutiny of ICE’s authority over whole family units, not only minors.
- The ruling is case‑specific and does not impose a broad injunction against Operation Metro Surge, though it reinforces that individual habeas petitions can block rapid deportations.
- The decision adds to a mounting tally of successful emergency habeas actions filed on behalf of people detained in Minnesota and flown or threatened with transfer out of state.
- Minnesota federal judges have increasingly stepped in to block or limit ICE’s ability to remove children seized during Metro Surge operations.
📰 Source Timeline (3)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- This article concerns a different child: 5‑year‑old Liam Conejo Ramos, not the previously reported 2‑year‑old.
- The judge’s order requires ICE to affirmatively release Liam and his father from detention by a specific Tuesday deadline and bars their removal while their case proceeds.
- The ruling explicitly confirms that the relief is case‑specific and does not create a broad injunction against Operation Metro Surge, though it reinforces that individual habeas petitions can block rapid deportations.
- This article concerns a different family — a 5‑year‑old boy and his father — but it reinforces the same pattern: Minnesota federal judges stepping in to block or limit ICE’s ability to remove children seized during Metro Surge operations.
- The new order bars removal of both the child and the father, not just the child, indicating courts are scrutinizing ICE’s authority over whole family units, not only minors.
- The ruling adds to the mounting tally of successful emergency habeas actions filed on behalf of people detained in Minnesota and flown or threatened with transfer out of state.