ILAP Community Update: March 21
March 21, 2025
Dear Community,
We write today in solidarity with Jose Adalberto Herrera, a Lewiston teenager being held by ICE and threatened with deportation. Jose was on his way to work with his uncle when their car was pulled over for alleged speeding by the Maine State Police, who contacted Customs and Border Protection (CBP). Jose lives in Lewiston with his parents and two siblings.
Sue Roche, ILAP’s Executive Director said: “The detention of Jose Adalberto Herrera, like other cases across the country, makes clear that the Trump administration’s rhetoric that it is prioritizing people who pose a threat to society is patently false. The administration is targeting immigrant families and communities broadly, and its depraved xenophobic agenda does not exempt children.” Read ILAP’s full statement here.
We need to mobilize for Jose, his family, and all immigrant Mainers in detention, NOW.
ACTION ALERT: Demand the Immediate Release of Jose Adalberto Herrera!
Join ILAP in calling on the Members of Congress who represent Jose and his family (Representative Golden, Senator Collins, and Senator King) and urge them to call for his immediate release. Members of Congress are home in Maine from Washington, D.C. this week. Jose should be home, too. Let’s make them hear our voices!
Rep. Golden:
📞 Call your closest district office: www.golden.house.gov/contact/offices
Senator Collins:
📞 Call your closest district office: www.collins.senate.gov/contact
Senator King:
📞 Call your closest district office: www.king.senate.gov/contact/office-locations
SAMPLE SCRIPT:
My name is [YOUR NAME] and I am a Maine resident residing at [ADDRESS]. I am reaching out to you today to call on you to take action and demand the release of Jose Adalberto Herrera of Lewiston, currently being held in immigration custody and being threatened with deportation. Jose belongs at home in Lewiston with his family. Detaining and deporting Maine’s children, workforce, and future does NOT make us safer, it harms all of us.
••This script is just an example of what you can say when you call. Feel free to share in your own words why Representative Golden and Senators Collins and King must take action for Jose.••
NOTE: Non-citizens and citizens alike can take part in this action alert. Members of Congress represent all of us, regardless of immigration status. You do not need to identify your immigration status when taking part in this action.
Immigration Law & Policy Updates:
Below is a summary of some key immigration law and policy developments during the week of March 16, 2025.
PLEASE NOTE: All updates are subject to rapid change.
Immigration Announcement:
Congress passes continuing resolution, giving ICE an extra half billion dollars for enforcement
What It Means:
Last Friday, Congress voted to pass a year-long funding resolution that included giving Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) $500 million more taxpayer dollars to carry out the Trump administration’s mass deportation agenda, bringing ICE’s total budget to $10 billion.
Three Members of Maine’s Congressional delegation – Representative Golden, Senator King, and Senator Collins – voted in favor.
The resolution also stripped out oversight and accountability guardrails that are typically in a resolution of this kind, giving the administration even more unchecked power.
Those in favor of the devastating provisions in the resolution - including the additional hundreds of millions for enforcement - claimed Congress had no other choices, either a government shutdown or the resolution. In reality, other proposals were on the table.
Trump administration invokes Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to deport people
In an alarming abuse of power, the Trump administration invoked the Alien Enemies Act to deport people from Venezuela that it is alleging are part of a gang without due process.
President Trump invoked the Act on unprecedented grounds, saying that he could use the president’s war powers to deport people based on alleged gang affiliation.
Experts say that the deportations themselves (of hundreds of people from Venezuela to El Salvador to do hard labor) is not authorized under any U.S. law. In addition, the deportations were in violation of a court order.
Green card holder Mahmoud Khalil held by ICE in retaliation for Palestinian rights advocacy and speech
The Trump administration is attempting to strip Palestinian rights activist Mahmoud Khalil of his green card. He was arrested by ICE without a warrant on March 8th and continues to be imprisoned by the Trump administration. Mahmoud Khalil was threatened with deportation, but his lawyers have secured a court order to ensure he would not be deported as his case proceeds.
The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) put together this policy brief explaining the obscure provision of immigration law the administration is attempting to use to take Mahmoud Khalil’s green card and deport him. More than 100 Members of the House of Representatives sent a letter to the administration demanding more information and expressing grave concerns. The First Amendment protects the speech of everyone in the U.S., regardless of immigration status.
Check out this action alert from the ACLU to learn more and contact ICE to demand Mahmoud Khalil’s release.
CORRECTION: In last week’s update, we noted that data from Catholic Charities of Maine showed that there are approximately 120 Ukrainians in Maine who entered through the Uniting 4 Ukraine program. There was a typo in that number, which should read approximately 220.
For previous updates from ILAP, check out the links below:
March 14, 2024: Community Update
March 7, 2025: Community Update
February 28, 2025: February Golden Door
Know Your Rights
An important step you can take now to protect yourself is to learn your rights! See ILAP’s resources here.
Stay Connected:
Follow ILAP @ilapmaine on social media for the latest updates:
Members of the Maine Bar can support ILAP’s work by donating to the Campaign for Justice, a special collaborative fundraising effort by Maine’s legal community to support legal aid.
