Trump's Trials - Minnesota refugees, including teenage girl, sue Trump admin over detention

Episode Date: February 11, 2026

Refugees from three continents are suing the Department of Homeland Security, saying immigration agents illegally arrested and detained them as part of a Trump administration review of asylum seekers. MPR's Matt Sepic reports. Support NPR and hear every episode of Trump's Terms sponsor-free with NPR+. Sign up at plus.npr.org.Learn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

You're listening to Trump's terms. I'm Scott Detrick. Every episode, we bring you one story from NPR's recent coverage of the 47th president. With a focus on ways his administration is pushing the boundaries of presidential power. Here's the latest from NPR. I'm Elsa Chang. A group of refugees is suing the Department of Homeland Security. They allege that immigration agents illegally arrested and detained them as part of a Trump administration review of their legal status as asylum seekers. One of the plaintiffs is a teenage girl in Minnesota. She says that ICE agents

forced her to spend a night in a hotel room with them after they detained her. Matt Seppick of Minnesota Public Radio joins us now from Minneapolis. Hi, Matt. Hi, Elsa. Okay, so help us understand what is this lawsuit? Like, who are the people making these allegations? The lawsuit is part of a flurry of litigation challenging the administration's immigration to enforcees. operation here. The plaintiffs are refugees from Africa, Asia, and Latin America, and were already vetted. They allege that masked ICE agents illegally arrested and detained them as part of what the Trump administration calls Operation Paris. The Department of Homeland Security, DHS, said last month that this is a sweeping effort to review asylum claims from 5,600 refugees here in Minnesota. Okay. And we mentioned that one of the plaintiffs in this lawsuit was held by ICE without her parents in a hotel

room? What do we know about her? Right. The girl's name and country of origin are redacted in her sworn statements, so we don't know too much, but she writes that she's a high school junior and came to the United States three years ago with her parents and four younger siblings. They settled in St. Cloud, a city about an hour northwest of Minneapolis. The teen writes that on January 13th, she was driving her dad's car to school when at least two ice vehicles with four to five agents pulled her over. The teen said she told them that she's a minor and showed her driver's license. The agents handcuffed her and forced her to abandon the car which her father relies on as a ride share driver. And what did ICE do next, according to her? Well, according to the court document

she filed, they took the girl to a detention center, the Whipple Federal Building near Minneapolis. The agent soon learned that a court order prevented them from sending the teen out of state. One agent told the girl to call her family and asked them to come get her, but warned that if they did, ICE would send all seven of them to Texas. After the family opted not to pick her up, the girl writes, quote, ICE decided to take me to a hotel. The teen's attorney, Michelle Drake, says no one in the family is accused of any crime or violating any immigration laws. Drake alleges that ICE was trying to deport people here legally as refugees by using the girl as bait. refugees are people who have not been in this country very long, and they are escaping from authoritarian and totalitarian governments that do things like kidnap part of your family to get you to come down for an interrogation. And how long, allegedly, did ICE agents hold her at this hotel?

She spent one night in a room with two agents. Drake says both were female. The girl writes that she had her own bed. She does not name the hotel, and she does not allege. that the agent sexually or physically abused her. The agents returned the girl to the detention center the next day where Drake picked her up. The girl says at no time did anybody from the government ask about her refugee status, the purported reason for her arrest.

And now the teen says she's afraid to leave her house. Do we know if ICE is detaining any other children at hotels without their parents? This girl's allegations are the first that I've heard of this. I emailed DHS yesterday and asked if detaining unaccompanied children in hotel rooms overnight with federal agents is a regular practice, and if they could point out any policy that allows it. I've yet to hear back. DHS has also not responded to the allegations in court. And I understand that we're learning more about conditions in the detention center where this girl was finally taken. What's the latest there? More details have come out as the result

of a related suit. Two lawyers with a human rights group visited the Whipple Federal Building Monday to see if DHS is allowing detainees to have access to legal counsel. A government lawyer said in court Friday, they get free unlimited, unmonitored phone calls. But attorney Hannah Sanderson with the nonprofit, the Advocates for Human Rights, says in a filing of her own that the phones aren't in a private area. Incorrect numbers are listed for legal aid groups. She also saw detainees shackled at the ankles. And Sanderson notes that at the end of the hallway, she spotted a stack of brand-new child car seats.

That is Matt Seppig of Minnesota Public Radio. Thank you, Matt. You're welcome. And before we wrap up, a thank you to our NPR Plus supporters who hear each show without sponsored messages and, of course, who help protect independent journalism. If you are not a supporter yet, you can visit plus.npr.org to find out how you can get a ton of podcast perks across dozens of NPR shows, like bonus episodes, exclusive merchandise, and more. Again, that's plus.npr.org. I'm Scott Detrow. Thanks for listening to Trump's Terms from NPR.

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