March 2026 – Kendall Brill & Kelly LLP (KBK) attorneys Tia S. Baheri and Emma M. Tehrani, serving on a pro bono basis, successfully secured the release of a Nicaraguan asylum seeker who was unlawfully detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The asylum seeker was apprehended by ICE when he crossed into the U.S. to seek asylum in 2022 and later released on parole. He had since been working as a gardener in Los Angeles to help support his family. Although he had no criminal history and fully complied with the conditions of his release, he was arrested and detained during a routine ICE check-in appointment.
“ICE failed to provide our client with a hearing before a neutral adjudicator as required by the Fifth Amendment. He was unlawfully detained for three months without any explanation or justification,” said Ms. Baheri. “This unconstitutional detention took an immense toll not only on our client’s health, but also on his family’s emotional well-being and finances.”
The asylum seeker and his family tried to find habeas counsel to challenge his detention, but they could not afford to retain an attorney and were initially unable to secure pro bono counsel. Subsequently, another detainee put them in touch with Public Counsel, a nonprofit public interest legal organization in Los Angeles.
After Public Counsel referred the case to Ms. Baheri, she conducted an in-person interview at the detention facility, gathered critical facts from the asylum seeker’s family, and filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus. The next day, Ms. Baheri and Ms. Tehrani filed an ex parte application for a Temporary Restraining Order seeking immediate release. The application not only established that the detention was unconstitutional, but also demonstrated emergency relief was warranted in light of their client’s health condition and the financial hardship his detention caused his family.
On February 27, 2026, the KBK team obtained a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) on the asylum seeker’s behalf, securing his immediate release from ICE custody. In his written order, Judge R. Gary Klausner further directed that ICE be “enjoined and restrained from re-detaining, arresting, or removing Petitioner absent compliance with constitutional protections.”
“This Order is a clear and concise recitation of not only the TRO standard, but more importantly the Constitutional rights that belong to all of us, regardless of citizenship,” remarked Ms. Tehrani. “It’s an important reminder that even in the current environment, dogged advocacy and the rule of law can still win the day – and even give a man his liberty.”
KBK attorneys are committed to community service and took this representation pro bono thanks to referral by Public Counsel, a nonprofit public interest law firm dedicated to advancing civil rights and racial and economic justice.