A Mexican national, Ernesto Zuniga Hilario, who resided in the U.S. for nearly two decades, is appealing to a federal judge to enable his return. Zuniga Hilario argues that immigration authorities deported him without a valid removal order, despite his repeated refusals to leave.
According to Zuniga Hilario, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained him in Texas in September. ICE then removed him to Mexico without allowing him a significant opportunity to understand or contest the government’s legal rationale for the deportation. His legal team filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas.
He last entered the U.S. without inspection around 2008 and lived near Lometa, Texas, before his detention. The petition notes he is married to Obdulia Cervantes Vega, a lawful permanent resident, and they have four U.S.-citizen children.
Any allegation that Ernesto Zuniga Hilario didn’t receive due process is FALSE. Zuniga Hilario signed his voluntary departure form on September 6 in blue ink. He left the United States and returned to Mexico on September 16. Breaking our country’s laws is always a bad decision.– Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson
This DHS statement contrasts sharply with Zuniga Hilario’s petition. The document claims he consistently declined voluntary departure, seeking a chance to present his case in front of an immigration judge.
ICE arrested Zuniga Hilario after a traffic stop conducted by the Lampasas County Sheriff’s Office. The agency claims he entered the United States illegally “at an unknown date and time by sneaking across our border on foot.” Newsweek has yet to receive a response from Zuniga Hilario’s legal team after reaching out for comment.
Under the Trump administration’s mass deportation policy, there were instances of wrongful deportations defying court orders. Federal judges have clashed with the administration over such removals, occasionally directing DHS to facilitate the return of individuals wrongfully deported.
Zuniga Hilario’s lawsuit asserts that immigration officials had no legal basis to deport him since he was not subject to an expedited removal order or any issued by an immigration judge. While acknowledging prior encounters with immigration authorities, he contends none resulted in a removal order.
He was traveling with his family for a therapy appointment when officers detained him. Subsequently, he was held at the T. Don Hutto detention facility in Texas. Court filings include a detainee-locator record confirming this location.
During his detention, Zuniga Hilario alleges officers repeatedly queried whether he wanted to leave voluntarily. He declined, expecting an opportunity to present his case before an immigration judge. The petition claims authorities ultimately placed him on a bus, transported him to an airport, and flew him to Mexico City without a legitimate chance to challenge the legal basis for his removal. He insists his departure was involuntary.
The lawsuit also claims a denial of due process. Zuniga Hilario’s attorneys argue that if officials reinstated an earlier removal order, they were obligated to notify him and offer a chance to contest the decision, which allegedly did not occur.
The petition acknowledges a potential jurisdictional challenge, as he had already been removed when the case was filed. Nevertheless, his attorneys maintain his case is unique due to the alleged lack of an underlying removal order and the failure to provide him a meaningful opportunity to challenge the action.