Overview
- Diana Santillana Galeano was released Wednesday night from ICE custody in Clay County, Indiana and has returned home to Chicago, her attorneys said.
- U.S. District Judge Jeremy C. Daniel granted her habeas petition, ruled the no-bond detention unlawful, and ordered a bond hearing by Nov. 18 with a subsequent status report to the court.
- Video from Nov. 5 shows agents pulling her through the daycare’s glass vestibule, while witnesses say officers entered rooms with children as DHS contends the arrest followed a failed traffic stop and was not inside the school.
- Court filings state she sought asylum or withholding of removal and received employment authorization valid through 2029, as DHS alleges she entered illegally in 2023 and paid a smuggler to bring her children.
- Her arrest drew condemnation from city and congressional leaders, a community fundraiser has raised nearly $160,000, and a reunion with families is planned Friday at Clark Park.