A federal building in San Diego. An 8-year-old was taken into custody after a Nov. 4 appointment at the Edward J. Schwartz federal building downtown. Photo: Federal Judiciary, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.
An 8-year-old Haitian third-grader was taken into federal custody on Nov. 4 after a scheduled immigration appointment at the Edward J. Schwartz federal building in downtown San Diego, and he remained in government care more than a week later, according to local news accounts. KPBS first reported the detention on Nov. 6, citing video recorded by Karen Pohl, a volunteer court observer with Detention Resistance, who said she had never before seen a child that young detained alone. NBC 7 San Diego also reported the case. The news organizations have not published the boy’s name. He had been living with his uncle after his father was deported, KPBS reported; a later KPBS story dated the father’s deportation to Mexico in March 2025.
A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told KPBS the uncle did not have legal custody and that, under the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act, the boy was treated as an unaccompanied minor. “Out of an abundance of caution and to ensure the child’s safety, ICE determined it was best to remove the child from the household and place him in the care of the Office of Refugee Resettlement,” the spokesperson said. San Diego Unified School District officials said the uncle was listed as an authorized caregiver on school records. Board trustee Cody Petterson told KPBS he did not know the full custody details but that the uncle was the person the father had entrusted with the child, and that Fay Elementary, where the boy attended third grade, would have crisis counselors.
By Nov. 10, members of San Diego’s congressional delegation were demanding answers, KPBS reported. Rep. Juan Vargas said classmates in City Heights were traumatized and that families needed information “to make sure that they don’t feel like they’re next.” The district sent a letter to the departments of Homeland Security and Health and Human Services saying sudden detention and family separation disrupt learning and mental health. Wister Gaetan, co-founder of the Haitian Bridge Alliance, said the boy should be back in school: “Sitting behind bars with the U.S. government is purely unacceptable.”
On Nov. 12, parents, teachers and elected officials gathered under the banner “Bring him home,” KPBS reported that evening. Councilmember Sean Elo-Rivera, whose district includes Fay Elementary, said that even with the community, two U.S. senators and the local Democratic congressional delegation asking for the child’s release, he was still in custody. Principal Johana Bielma said the episode had disrupted learning: “It is hard to learn when students are in constant fear.” Fay counselor Dorchella James said students were sad and angry and that she did not have answers for them. As of that rally, ICE’s position remained that it could not determine a legal guardian, and the boy had not been returned to his uncle.
