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ICE deported an Austin woman and her three children. Two of them are U.S. citizens.
By Maya Fawaz
May 8, 2025 at 5:01 AM CDT
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This story has been updated with a statement from ICE.
A mother and her three children were deported from the Austin area Tuesday, the family's lawyer said.
Daniel Hatoum, an attorney with the Texas Civil Rights Project, said Denisse Parra Vargas is from Mexico and is undocumented. Her attorneys and advocates working with the family said she entered the U.S. in 2016, fleeing an abusive former partner. She has three kids — aged 8, 5 and 4 — two of whom are U.S. citizens.
Hatoum learned about the case from advocates at Grassroots Leadership. The nonprofit organization got involved after Parra Vargas was stopped in North Austin on Thursday for driving with expired tags.
She and her partner were detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Hatoum said Parra Vargas was released later that day with an ankle monitor; her partner remained in ICE custody.
Parra Vargas was told to report to a processing center in Pflugerville on Tuesday. Her attorney and advocates with Grassroots Leadership said she thought she was going for a routine check-in.
"They seem to have convinced her that her going was for the benefit of her partner as well," Hatoum said. " So she went with her three children, and ICE decided to arrest them all."
After about 24 hours of searching for the family, advocates with Grassroots Leadership said they located them Wednesday in Mexico.
“This is incredibly traumatizing for the children, and our community deserves answers,” Annette Price, executive director of Grassroots Leadership, said in a press release. “This family deserves dignity, due process, and to remain in Austin where they belong.”
The Department of Homeland Security released a statement Thursday saying Parra Vargas chose to bring her children with her to Mexico.
“The narrative that DHS is deporting American children is false," DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in the statement. "Rather than separate their families, ICE asked the mothers if they wanted to be removed with their children or if they wanted ICE to place the children with someone safe the parent designates."
The family's attorneys said, however, that ICE did not allow Parra Vargas to communicate with relatives nearby who were willing to keep the children in the U.S.
Correction: A previous version of this story said the eldest child was 9. The children are 8, 5 and 4.
This story has been updated with a statement from ICE.
A mother and her three children were deported from the Austin area Tuesday, the family's lawyer said.
Daniel Hatoum, an attorney with the Texas Civil Rights Project, said Denisse Parra Vargas is from Mexico and is undocumented. Her attorneys and advocates working with the family said she entered the U.S. in 2016, fleeing an abusive former partner. She has three kids — aged 8, 5 and 4 — two of whom are U.S. citizens.
Hatoum learned about the case from advocates at Grassroots Leadership. The nonprofit organization got involved after Parra Vargas was stopped in North Austin on Thursday for driving with expired tags.
She and her partner were detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents. Hatoum said Parra Vargas was released later that day with an ankle monitor; her partner remained in ICE custody.
Parra Vargas was told to report to a processing center in Pflugerville on Tuesday. Her attorney and advocates with Grassroots Leadership said she thought she was going for a routine check-in.
"They seem to have convinced her that her going was for the benefit of her partner as well," Hatoum said. " So she went with her three children, and ICE decided to arrest them all."
After about 24 hours of searching for the family, advocates with Grassroots Leadership said they located them Wednesday in Mexico.
“This is incredibly traumatizing for the children, and our community deserves answers,” Annette Price, executive director of Grassroots Leadership, said in a press release. “This family deserves dignity, due process, and to remain in Austin where they belong.”
The Department of Homeland Security released a statement Thursday saying Parra Vargas chose to bring her children with her to Mexico.
“The narrative that DHS is deporting American children is false," DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in the statement. "Rather than separate their families, ICE asked the mothers if they wanted to be removed with their children or if they wanted ICE to place the children with someone safe the parent designates."
The family's attorneys said, however, that ICE did not allow Parra Vargas to communicate with relatives nearby who were willing to keep the children in the U.S.
Correction: A previous version of this story said the eldest child was 9. The children are 8, 5 and 4.