A federal judge in Louisiana has ordered the U.S. government to explain itself after accusations surfaced that immigration authorities deported a 2-year-old American citizen to Honduras.
U.S. District Judge Terry Doughty, a Trump appointee known for rulings aligned with conservative causes, issued a memorandum Friday setting a hearing for May 16 to investigate what happened to the child, identified only as V.M.L.
According to court filings, V.M.L. was born in 2023 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana — a fact confirmed by her birth certificate. Her representatives filed an emergency petition for a writ of habeas corpus, seeking court intervention to prevent her removal from the country. At the time, they believed she was still on U.S. soil.
A Handwritten Note, A Missing Child
The government’s defense centered around a handwritten note, allegedly from the child’s mother, stating she wished to take her daughter with her back to Honduras. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) argued that they were following the mother’s wishes.
However, Judge Doughty found the government’s evidence insufficient.
“The Court doesn’t know that,” he wrote, questioning whether real consent was properly obtained or whether V.M.L.’s legal rights as a U.S. citizen were ignored.
Adding to the confusion, ICE expressed skepticism over the identities of those seeking custody of the child — including her designated “next friend,” Trish Mack, and her father — citing a lack of supporting identification.
A Plane Over the Gulf
As the situation escalated, Judge Doughty personally contacted government lawyers seeking clarification. By the time they responded, he was informed that V.M.L. and her mother had already been released in Honduras.
The judge noted that when he made his call, he was already aware that the plane carrying them — tail number N570TA — was flying over what he referred to as the “Gulf of America,” a nod to former President Trump’s controversial renaming of the Gulf of Mexico.
Grave Constitutional Concerns
In his sharply worded memo, Doughty reminded the government that deporting a U.S. citizen is illegal and unconstitutional.
“In the interest of dispelling our strong suspicion that the Government just deported a U.S. citizen with no meaningful process,” he wrote, “it is ordered that the matter be set for hearing.”
The incident raises serious constitutional questions and has already drawn scrutiny over how immigration cases involving minor U.S. citizens are being handled.
Background on the “Gulf of America”
Doughty’s mention of the “Gulf of America” highlights another point of controversy. Earlier this year, Trump’s administration officially renamed the body of water traditionally known as the Gulf of Mexico — a move that sparked a bitter clash between the White House and the Associated Press, ultimately leading to the AP being ejected from the White House press pool.