First Habeas Petition Directly Challenges Indefinite Detention in Notorious Foreign Prison

Attorneys for Edicson David Quintero Chac n a -year-old Venezuelan immigrant and father of two has filed the first known habeas corpus petition challenging the United States regime s role in his detention at the notorious CECOT prison in El Salvador The petition filed Wednesday seeks his immediate release and argues that his confinement violates both U S law and the Constitution From Hopeful Asylum Seeker to Foreign Detention Quintero arrived in the U S in April surrendered to immigration personnel at the U S -Mexico dividing line and was published under Immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE supervision Initially fitted with an ankle monitor he complied with immigration procedures until June when he was re-detained on charges of gang affiliations accusations his legal group calls baseless Despite having a removal order to Venezuela and stating his willingness to return there Quintero was instead sent to CECOT in March part of a mass deportation of immigrants under the Alien Enemies Act AEA a rarely used wartime statute His removal defied a prior court order and he now sits in one of the preponderance secretive and controversial prisons in Central America Source Law and Crime News Conditions at CECOT and Constitutional Concerns CECOT formally known as the Centro de Confinamiento de Terrorismo has been widely criticized by international rights groups for its harsh and secretive conditions According to the habeas filing Quintero is being held incommunicado with no access to legal counsel or communication with the outside world Human Rights Watch reports that no known detainees have been issued from CECOT prompting concerns of indefinite detention The petition argues that Quintero s confinement violates the Fifth Amendment s Due Process Clause which prohibits arbitrary and indefinite civil detention He has not been charged with a crime tried or convicted the filing states He is detained solely based on the United States agreement with the Salvadoran establishment which the U S is funding Habeas Corpus A Tool Against Unlawful Detention The habeas corpus petition a fundamental legal remedy in U S law argues that Quintero s detention is not only unconstitutional but also illegal under the Immigration and Nationality Act INA The law generally requires release if a deported individual has not been removed within days of a final order In Quintero s affair that time has long passed and the petition contends that no statute allows for his ongoing detention in a foreign prison The filing follows the legal blueprint set by the U S Supreme Court in a similar scenario involving Kilmar Abrego Garcia another immigrant wrongly deported to El Salvador The petition insists that even if Quintero is considered removed his continued imprisonment is unlawful since it no longer serves any legal purpose under immigration law Legal Black Hole No Statutory or Constitutional Authority Ultimately Quintero s attorneys argue that CECOT is a legal black hole where U S detainees are held without any recognized legal authority They claim that by paying El Salvador to detain individuals like Quintero the U S ruling body is using foreign detention to circumvent constitutional protections a move that not only violates due process but also risks setting a dangerous precedent His lawyers demand immediate release stating The U S governing body cannot contract its way around the Constitution