Justice Department Appeals Order Freeing 5‑Year‑Old From ICE Detention

The Justice Department has filed a notice of appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit seeking to overturn a January ruling that ordered the release of 5‑year‑old Minnesota resident Liam Conejo Ramos and his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, from immigration detention in Texas. U.S. District Judge Fred Biery had found their arrest and detention during ICE’s Operation Metro Surge in the Minneapolis area violated their constitutional rights, blasting the case as rooted in a “perfidious lust for unbridled power” and an “ill‑conceived and incompetently implemented” pursuit of daily deportation quotas that traumatized a child. If DOJ prevails on appeal, the pair—whose case drew national attention after photos showed Liam in a blue bunny hat and Spider‑Man backpack surrounded by agents—could be returned to custody, even as the boy has rejoined kindergarten in Columbia Heights and the family struggles to normalize his life. Community advocates had accused ICE of using Liam as “bait” to get his mother to open their door, while DHS previously defended agents’ conduct and has not yet commented on the appeal. The case is fast becoming a test of judicial limits on quota‑driven enforcement operations and child detention, with immigrant‑rights groups sharing the judge’s unusually sharp language as evidence of systemic abuse, and enforcement defenders insisting agents acted within the law.