Detained Mother Reunited with Family After ICE Detention

Strategic Insights -

Paola Clouatre's reunion with her two young children, Noah and Lyn, was a moment she will never forget. Two months after being detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) while breastfeeding her three-month-old baby, Clouatre finally returned home to her family in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The young mother, born in Mexico and brought to the US at 14, had spent her teenage years in homeless shelters before meeting her husband Adrián, a Marine Corps veteran, in 2022. Clouatre was detained on May 27, 2024, after a deportation order was discovered against her, due to her failure to attend a hearing whose notice had been sent to her mother.

Key Takeaways:

  • Paola Clouatre, a 26-year-old mother, was detained by ICE on May 27, 2024, while breastfeeding her three-month-old baby.
  • Clouatre had been in the US since she was 14 and had spent her teenage years in homeless shelters before meeting her husband Adrián in 2022.
  • The deportation order against Clouatre was due to her failure to attend a hearing whose notice had been sent to her mother.
  • Clouatre was transferred to ICE's rural detention center in Monroe, four hours from her home, where she spent several days in shock and had limited contact with her family.
  • Her husband managed to bring Clouatre's children to visit her in detention and provided her with a breast pump to prevent her milk supply from drying up.
  • Clouatre was told several times that she could be deported at any moment and was worried about her future and how she would survive in Mexico.
  • The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) stated that "all detainees receive adequate food, medical treatment, and have the opportunity to communicate with their families and lawyers."
  • Clouatre was released from ICE custody after Senator John Kennedy's office submitted a request to DHS for her release, and she must now wear an electronic ankle monitor and report to an official every two weeks.
  • Clouatre's legal process could last several years, but she could eventually obtain her green card.

Statistics:

  • 105 women were detained in Clouatre's dormitory.
  • The number of days Clouatre spent in ICE detention is not specified.
  • 2 months is the time span Clouatre was away from her children.
  • 4 hours is the distance between Clouatre's home and the ICE detention center in Monroe.
  • Clouatre must report to an official every 2 weeks while on electronic ankle monitor.
  • The number of years Clouatre's legal process could last is several years.

Sources:

  • CNN
  • AP (Associated Press)
  • Department of Homeland Security (DHS) statement attributed to Deputy Secretary Tricia McLaughlin
  • Senator John Kennedy's office