BUFFALO, NY – In a fight to release Buffalo resident and asylum seeker J. M. A. from unreasonable, prolonged Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention, the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) and Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights filed a habeas petition in the Western District of New York demanding his immediate release. The groups argue that due process does not permit the government to detain noncitizens like J. M. A. indefinitely, without any opportunity to seek bond. 

Fleeing political persecution in Cuba for his anti-Communist beliefs, J. M. A. came to the United States in 2023, through the CBPOne App. He applied for lawful permanent residence status under the Cuban Adjustment Act, and received work papers, and a social security number. But in February 2025, J. M. A. was falsely accused of a petty crime—the charges have since been dismissed—and was turned over by local police to ICE, in violation of state law. He has been locked in the Buffalo Federal Detention Facility (Batavia) ever since, despite the fact that he is neither a flight risk nor a danger to the community.

“It is unconstitutional and profoundly harmful for ICE to arbitrarily detain J. M. A. in Batavia — a facility long criticized for its cruel, inhumane conditions — for months, with no due process and no end in sight,” said Thomas Munson, Staff Attorney at the New York Civil Liberties Union. “J.M.A. has done exactly what the government asked of him while pursuing a legal pathway to citizenship. For ICE to subject him or anyone else to prolonged detention without any justification is a blatant violation of the constitutional rights afforded to every person in this country.”

“J.M.A. came to the United States to escape an oppressive government in Cuba,” said Sarah Gillman, Director of Strategic U.S. Litigation at Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights. “He did everything that was asked of him, from filing applications and attending court hearings to securing a job. But instead of granting the humanitarian protection that he is legally entitled to, the U.S. government traded one form of oppression for another. J.M.A.’s prolonged detention isn’t just unlawful and unnecessary – it’s reflective of a broken system that punishes people even when they follow the rules.”

Over the past few months, ICE officers have tracked, arrested, and detained thousands of immigrants in New York’s detention facilities. As of September 8, ICE has trapped over 52,000 immigrants in facilities in New York — and the numbers are only climbing. 

NYCLU counsel on this case includes Thomas Munson, Amy Belsher, and Bobby Hodgson. RFK counsel on this case includes Sarah Gillman and Sarah Decker.

All case materials can be found here. 

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