Immigrants from New Orleans are alleging that Immigration and Customs Enforcement deports an immigrant even if ICE is under investigation for racially profiling the person.

Wilmer Irías-Palma, who came from Honduras to New Orleans in 2006, faces deportation as early as Friday, but his complaint that ICE racially profiled him against his civil rights is currently being investigated by the Department of Homeland Security's Office of Civil Rights and Civil Liberties, NBC News reported.

The immigrant learned of his fate the day after his wife supported immigration activists at a news conference in Washington, D.C.

"We think this is obvious retaliation," Jennifer Rosenbaum, legal and policy director for New Orleans Workers Center for Racial Justice, said a group "dedicated to organizing workers across race and industry to build the power and participation of workers and communities," according to its official website.

Irías-Palma received a stay of deportation after making his complaint against ICE, but he "has been kept in detention," according to NBC News.

"The idea that as a result of bringing forward a civil rights complaint you are then incarcerated until the agency you are complaining about decides there was a [valid complaint], it undercuts every concept of fairness and due process we have in this country," Saket Soni, executive director of the New Orleans group, said.

According to the official ICE website, it's Criminal Alien Program "places a high priority on combating illegal immigration, including targeting illegal aliens with criminal records who pose a threat to public safety."

Bryan Cox, an ICE spokesman, said that the program is about deporting undocumented and criminal immigrants who are dangerous to the community, and ICE prioritizes cases based on the "totality of an individual's public safety threat beyond their status as an immigration fugitive."

"ICE does not conduct sweeps or raids to target undocumented immigrants indiscriminately," he said.

Still, Irías-Palma, along with Melvin Bardales-Deras and Yestel Velasquez, who is also scheduled to be deported, argue that ICE racially profiles Latinos in New Orleans by focusing on areas and businesses popular to the community. They also claim that ICE uses stop-and-frisk procedures and mobile phones to fingerprint those who look Latino.

In May, ICE drove to two New Orleans stores, one owned by Irías-Palma, in unmarked cars, the complaint claims. The agents detained, fingerprinted and arrested 12 Latinos. Some of them were released.

"I think they are trying to deport the evidence," said Saket Soni, executive director of the New Orleans group. "I think they moved up the departure date because of public outcry and the anticipation of bad publicity in coming weeks."
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Follow Scharon Harding on Twitter: @ScharHar.

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