Federal Judge Orders Release of Louisville Woman Detained by ICE
A federal judge has ordered the immediate release of Armelle Bondonga, a Louisville woman who had been held in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody in Southern Indiana for eight weeks. Judge Tanya Walton Pratt granted a writ of habeas corpus on Tuesday, mandating her release. Bondonga was arrested by ICE agents on August 12 during a routine interview for her marriage-based green card. An immigration judge had previously denied her bond in September, citing an 'administratively final' removal order that placed her case under the jurisdiction of the Department of Homeland Security. However, Judge Pratt's order noted that the 90-day removal period Bondonga faced had expired. Bondonga's legal team argued that ICE 'disobeyed the law' by detaining her, and she has initiated proceedings to reopen her removal case. Bondonga immigrated to the United States from the Democratic Republic of Congo with her family in 2013.
