A federal judge in Oregon on Tuesday issued an order preventing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from deporting a Mexican asylum seeker from a Washington detention center, according to local reports.
The migrant, a 24-year-old transgender woman referred to as “O-J-M” in court documents, was detained outside a Portland courtroom on Monday and moved to the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, Washington.
U.S. District Court Judge Amy Baggio, appointed by President Joe Biden, also required ICE to disclose the precise date and time of the removal from Portland and to justify why it was considered urgently necessary.
Judge Amy Margaret Baggio speaks during her Senate judiciary nomination hearing. On Tuesday she issued an order barring Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) from removing a Mexican asylum seeker from a Washington detention facility, according to local reports. (U.S. Senate)
Oregon sanctuary laws prevent it from having long-term immigration detention facilities, and — aside from temporary holding cells at the Portland ICE office — the nearest immigration detention center is the Tacoma facility.
OPB reported that O-J-M sought asylum at a port of entry along the California-Mexico border, where she was arrested, detained and released. Since then, O-J-M has attended ICE check-ins and filed her formal asylum claim in February. In April, immigration officials began removal proceedings against O-J-M, the outlet reports, citing the migrant’s attorneys.
Manning told Willamette Weekly that his client had not committed a crime while in the U.S.
During a mandatory court hearing for her asylum case in Portland on Monday, ICE attorneys moved to dismiss O-J-M’s case entirely—effectively stripping her of both the case and the legal protections it provided. Afterward, ICE agents apprehended O-J-M.
That led to Innovation Law Lab Attorney Jordan Cunnings, who also represents O-J-M, saying the arrest was a “dangerous attempt by ICE to circumvent due process, speed up deportations, and eviscerate the right to asylum.”
A person holds an upside down US flag during the “Tacoma May Day – Stand Up for Worker and Immigrant Rights” march and rally outside the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, Washington on May 1, 2025. (Jason Redmond / AFP)
“This unethical behavior goes against the values we hold as Oregonians, ensuring that everyone is welcomed and included in our state,” Cunnings said, per KOIN.
Portland Mayor Keith Wilson said that the city “stands unwavering in its commitment to sanctuary policies,” adding that Portland “will not obstruct lawful federal enforcement operations,” per Willamette Weekly.
Fox News Digital has reached out to ICE and Homeland Security for comment.
