Maria de Jesus Estrada Juarez, a DACA recipient and mother, was unlawfully detained and deported after attending an immigration hearing in February.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, March 25, 2026
Media Contacts
press@homeishere.us
Washington, D.C. – Today, in a major victory in the fight to uphold due process and the DACA program, a federal judge ordered the federal government to facilitate the return of Maria de Jesus Estrada Juarez, a DACA recipient wrongfully deported to Mexico and separated from her U.S. citizen daughter last month. U.S. District Judge Dena Coggins called Maria’s deportation a “flagrant violation” of DACA’s promise of protection and ordered that she be reunited with her family in the next seven days.
For months, advocates and champions in Congress have been raising alarms over the Department of Homeland Security’s brazen violation of DACA’s protections, with nearly 300 DACA recipients detained and close to 90 deported that we know of.
The Home Is Here Coalition released the following statement:
“This is a moment to wholeheartedly celebrate. After having her entire world turn upside down, and weeks filled with chaos and heartbreak, Maria will finally be able to hug her daughter and return to the only place she calls home. Let this be a reminder that DACA has and will continue to be an essential lifeline for hundreds of thousands of people, and we will not stop until Maria is safely back home and the violent agenda to target DACA and millions of immigrants ends.
Maria’s story is one of hundreds of DACA recipients who immigration agents have targeted, detained, and even deported. There is no overstating that despite today’s monumental victory, we continue to face the most dangerous moment in DACA’s 14-year history. Congress must pressure the federal administration to comply with Judge Coggins’ orders, push for the immediate return of all other DACA recipients who have been deported, release those who are currently detained, and deliver the stability and permanency that millions have fought for over more than a decade by passing the American Dream and Promise Act.”