PRESS RELEASE: TCRP FILES HABEAS PETITION ON BEHALF OF VENEZUELAN DETAINEE AT RISK OF GITMO TRANSFER

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

February 18, 2025

Contact: 

Texas Civil Rights Project, media@texascivilrightsproject.org 

TCRP FILES HABEAS PETITION ON BEHALF OF VENEZUELAN DETAINEE AT RISK OF GITMO TRANSFER

Texas Civil Rights Project and partners are representing John Doe, aiming to prevent his transfer to Guantánamo Bay 

AUSTIN, TX – Today, the Texas Civil Rights Project (TCRP) and the University of Iowa College of Law’s Federal Impact Litigation Clinic (UIC) filed a habeas corpus petition on behalf of John Doe, an indefinitely detained individual from Venezuela with no criminal history. View the filing here.

John Doe entered the United States in November 2023 seeking asylum from political strife in his home country of Venezuela. His asylum claim was denied, and he has been held in detention indefinitely since December of 2023 at a facility in Colorado. Recently, he was transferred to the El Paso Processing Center—a concern to civil rights advocates, as detention transfer flights to Guantánamo Bay, Cuba have primarily originated from the El Paso Processing Center. 

The Trump administration recently announced their intention to utilize detention facilities at Guantánamo Bay—known for holding suspects of terrorism and enemy combatants—to provide additional capacity for “high-priority criminals.” However, recent media has indicated that a number of noncitizens without a criminal history have been transferred to Guantánamo.  

Through this habeas petition, Mr. Doe is challenging his indefinite detention as a violation of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) and the Fifth Amendment’s Due Process Clause. 

“Due process is a core value of our judicial system. Our habeas petition on behalf of John Doe calls for due process in the inhumane practice of holding individuals who possess no criminal history in ‘indefinite detention.’ No human should be subjected to the horrors of detention for 14 months, let alone indefinitely. The Trump administration’s decision to expand operations at Guantánamo Bay is raising unprecedented human rights concerns. We should be helping those who seek safety at our border, not subjecting them to further distress or displacement,” said Rochelle Garza, President of the Texas Civil Rights Project.

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About Texas Civil Rights Project

The Texas Civil Rights Project is boldly serving the movement for equality and justice in and out of the courts. We use our tools of litigation and legal advocacy to protect and advance the civil rights of everyone in Texas, and we partner with communities across the state to serve the rising movement for social justice. We undertake our work with a vision of a Texas in which all communities can thrive with dignity, justice and without fear.