The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has denounced the release of a transgender illegal alien, citing gender ideology fanaticism as the driving force behind a federal judge’s ruling. DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin blasted U.S. District Court Judge Amy Baggio—appointed by President Joe Biden—for releasing Odalis Jhonatan Martinez-Velasquez, a biological male from Mexico, after more than 40 days in ICE custody.
Martinez-Velasquez, who entered the U.S. illegally in 2023, was detained in a male facility per President Donald Trump’s executive order prohibiting male placement in women’s detention centers. McLaughlin warned that Judge Baggio’s ruling “undermines ICE’s commitment to promoting safe, secure, and humane environments for women in custody, and subverts the American people’s mandate to restore commonsense to our immigration system and reject extreme gender fanaticism.”
ICE had processed Martinez-Velasquez for expedited removal before the court intervened, claiming the detention violated procedural safeguards. The judge ruled the lack of location and legal status updates deprived the migrant of due process—a move DHS says overstepped legal boundaries. “An immigration judge, not a district judge, has the authority to decide if Odalis Jhonatan Martinez-Velasquez should be released or detained,” McLaughlin stated.
Baggio’s decision came after advocacy group Innovation Law Lab filed a habeas petition. Attorneys allege the migrant fled cartel violence and checked in with ICE regularly.
But DHS made its policy clear. “The President made it clear on Day One: DHS will not buy into radical gender ideology when detaining illegal aliens,” said McLaughlin.