Estefany Rodríguez, a Nashville journalist who reported on local immigration enforcement arrests before she herself was detained, was released Thursday from a Louisiana detention center, according to the Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition, which is providing legal representation.
Rodríguez spent 16 days in detention, where she was subject to “inhumane and difficult treatment,” her attorneys wrote in court filings earlier this week.
A legal challenge to Rodríguez’ March 4 arrest remains ongoing in federal court. Her attorneys allege Rodríguez was detained without a warrant and in retaliation for her reporting on local Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrests for the Spanish-language news outlet Nashville Noticias.
“We are grateful that Estefany is able to walk away with her freedom to be with her family as she continues to fight for her right to remain in her community and in the U.S.,” read a statement Thursday by Mike Holley, an attorney with the Tennessee Immigrant & Refugee Rights Coalition. Rodríguez is married and has a 7-year-old daughter.
“Through that petition, we are seeking not only her complete release, but an order prohibiting ICE from mistreating her in a similar way in the future,” the statement said.