UC Berkeley Student Seeking Asylum Detained at SFO
Albornoz Hernandez was preparing to take a flight to Portland alongside her boyfriend when immigration agents arrested her at San Francisco International Airport on October 30. Her attorney, Niko De Bremaeker, said the agents approached in plain clothes and did not identify themselves before taking her into custody. Agents said they were detaining her because she had overstayed her visa.
The business administration student came to the United States from Colombia in 2022. De Bremaeker said she applied for asylum based on gender-based violence, has a pending application and held a valid work permit. She previously attended San Jose City College and was conducting artificial intelligence research at Berkeley. Her attorney said she has no criminal record.
After being held in Stockton, she was transferred to California City, where she remains in ICE custody. De Bremaeker filed a habeas corpus petition on November 2, arguing that her detention is unlawful. He said she had previously dealt with federal officials while complying with immigration requirements.
UC Berkeley Chancellor Rich Lyons wrote to immigration officials asking that she be able to return to her studies. The university said it was working with her family and offering legal assistance. De Bremaeker said her detention was causing her severe distress. ICE had not responded to questions about the arrest by November 2.
ICE Detention Threatens Asylum Seeker’s Education and Due Process
A student seeking refuge from gender-based violence in Colombia was taken into ICE custody at San Francisco International Airport on October 30, despite her attorney’s account that she had complied with immigration requirements and held a valid work permit. Paula Valentina Albornoz Hernandez, 23, is now detained in California City while her lawyer challenges the detention in court.
Albornoz Hernandez came to the United States in 2022 and has a pending asylum application. Her attorney, Niko De Bremaeker, said agents in plain clothes approached her at the airport without identifying themselves before arresting her. The student, who has no criminal record, had previously dealt with federal officials without being taken into custody, he said.
The case puts the consequences of immigration enforcement in sharp focus: a student who was pursuing a degree and conducting research now faces a disruption to her education while locked up. UC Berkeley Chancellor Rich Lyons has asked immigration officials to allow her to resume her studies, and the university says it is working with her family and offering legal assistance.
De Bremaeker filed a habeas corpus petition on November 2, arguing that her detention is unlawful. He said she is extremely distressed by her confinement. The stated basis for the arrest was that she had overstayed her visa, but her asylum claim remains pending and her attorney says she had followed immigration requirements.
Visa Overstay at Center of Berkeley Student’s ICE Detention
Federal immigration enforcement brought a UC Berkeley student into custody at San Francisco International Airport on October 30 after officials said she had overstayed her visa. Paula Valentina Albornoz Hernandez, 23, is being held in California City as her attorney seeks to overturn the detention.
Albornoz Hernandez arrived from Colombia in 2022 and has a pending asylum application based on gender-based violence, her attorney said. He also said she had a valid work permit and no criminal record, and that she had complied with immigration requirements. Those circumstances are central to the legal challenge, but do not erase the reported visa overstay at the heart of the enforcement action.
Her attorney, Niko De Bremaeker, filed a habeas corpus petition on November 2 arguing that she is being held unlawfully. He said agents in plain clothes arrested her at the airport without identifying themselves. She was held in Stockton before being transferred to California City.
UC Berkeley Chancellor Rich Lyons has asked immigration officials to let her return to her studies, while the university says it is supporting her family and helping with legal representation. The case now turns on the challenge to her detention and her pending asylum process; the university’s concern for her education does not itself resolve those legal questions.
Reported by Berkeleyside, SFist, KTVU FOX 2, Newsweek.
