Derlis Snaider Chusin Toaquiza, a 19-year-old student who attends Grover Cleveland High School in Queens, Ecuador, was recently reunited with his mother in an outpouring of emotion at Port Authority. Derlis was detained in Texas by federal immigration authorities and had returned home upon release on bond. His father, clutching a handmade ‘Welcome Home Derlis’ sign, was brimming with tears as he witnessed the warm reunion, which was captured on a mobile phone by his 6-year-old sister.
The emotional homecoming occurred nearly six weeks post Derlis’s arrest by federal agents immediately after he exited his routine asylum hearing at 26 Federal Plaza in Manhattan on June 4. Despite a Department of Homeland Security attorney’s motion to dismiss Derlis’s case for asylum, the immigration judge rejected it and scheduled a new court date as per official documents. Regardless, the agents proceeded with his arrest.
His detention lasted several weeks until a Texan immigration judge approved his release on a Monday, as informed by his legal representatives. His release was made possible following the Envision Freedom Fund’s payment of the $20,000 bail on the next morning. Prior to the judge’s verdict, Derlis took his case to the federal court, thereby challenging his detention, and the city’s Law Department stood in his favor, advocating for his release.
In a heartfelt statement attributed to Derlis’ parents on Friday, they expressed their gratitude to those who supported them in their trying time. The family conveyed that through the benevolent acts, their despair had been replaced with hope and they felt eternally indebted for this. They affirmed their belief in the kindness of people around them and emphasized their love for all those who came to their aid.
However, securing Derlis’s release was no trivial task, according to the New York Legal Assistance Group, who represented him legally. A member of the group described it as a collective effort driven by four legal practitioners and a paralegal assistant. The attorney elucidated to reporters that they successfully demonstrated Derlis’s case as neither a flight risk nor a danger.
While detained, Derlis provided a first-hand account of the distressing conditions he and other detainees experienced at the 26 Federal Plaza. Overcrowding was so severe that inmates were forced to sleep in upright positions. Derlis, who was held there for four days, recalled the indignities, including receiving only one or two meals a day and experiencing a lack of privacy due to a bathroom that was only partitioned from the holding room by a half-wall.
While in detention, Derlis also experienced worsening gastritis symptoms due to inadequate food. His petitions for additional meals were repeatedly dismissed, as mentioned in the court records. He was eventually relocated to an Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Livingston, Texas, on June 8.
One member of Derlis’s legal team voiced the relief they felt upon his safe return, but also highlighted the undue complexity required to secure the release of someone of his innocence and community contribution. Reinforcing that Derlis merely attended immigration court to silently seek his legitimate protection, they expressed it was unreasonable for him to be detained at the outset.
Last year, Derlis and his family sought refuge in the United States fearing intolerance in Ecuador as members of the Indigenous Panzaleo community. With a clean record, Derlis rolled into a high school in Ridgewood, New York, upon his arrival. He excelled in football, culminating in the school’s soccer team selection, and his stellar performance earned him the ‘Most Improved’ accolade from his tutors, a moment his parents cherished on his behalf while he was still in custody.
A school teacher commended Derlis for his willingness to assist his peers and volunteer whenever necessary. They noted his bravery in English class and described the young man as affectionate, diligent, and affable. His arrest left a somber mood hanging over the school, intensely impacting its community.
Apart from academics, Derlis is a gifted musician, proficient at playing the piano and guitar. He performs at his family’s place of worship every Wednesday and Sunday. Despite battling adversities, he dreams of joining his high school’s swimming team, having learned swimming in the past year.
In a statement, a spokesperson from City Hall emphasized that when Immigrant New Yorkers are intimidated by basic public services such as going to school or seeking medical help, it jeopardizes the city’s safety. The city’s law department supported Derlis by filing a brief and expressed pride in advocating for this law-abiding young New Yorker, who was merely complying with a mandated hearing.
Derlis is the second recorded public school student from New York City to be detained by ICE. The first student, a 20-year-old from the Bronx, continues to be confined in a Pennsylvania facility. These incidents highlight an unsettling trend, triggering contemplation about immigrant rights and the path to lawful citizenship.