AUSTIN — Texas federal judge Orlando García set a hearing for next week to examine a lawsuit requesting the release and suspension of deportation of Wilber Garcés, the Venezuelan who was shot and wounded by an agent of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement Service (ICE) and who remains held in an immigration detention center.
In an order issued this Tuesday, Judge García, of the Western District of Texas, in San Antonio, scheduled the in-person hearing for Wednesday, September 30, and ordered Garcés to go to court.
On Monday night, the migrant’s lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, filed a complaint with the court in which she requested his immediate release and a temporary stay of his deportation while he tries to file a U visa petition.
This visa offers immigration protection to victims of certain crimes who collaborate with the authorities.
Garcés, 28, remained in a hospital for several hours on Monday afternoon after reporting loss of mobility and sensitivity on the left side of his body, according to his lawyer.
According to the lawyer, her client still has a bullet lodged in his body and claims that he has not received adequate medical care for his wounds.
The migrant version
After the shooting, which occurred on Sunday, Austin emergency services transported Garcés to a hospital in the city, where he received initial medical attention, although the bullet was not removed, according to the migrant himself on Monday by telephone during a press conference organized by Lincoln-Goldfinch and local activists.
According to his version, ICE agents intercepted him while he was delivering DoorDash orders in his vehicle. Garcés claimed that the officers collided with one of the sides of the car and shot him when he tried to move it to park before getting out.
What does DHS say?
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has not publicly offered further details about the circumstances of the incident nor has it responded to multiple requests for information.
For its part, ‘The Atlantic’ magazine, which cited a DHS official who spoke on condition of anonymity, reported that agents had already tried to detain Garcés.
According to your version, The migrant did not stop, continued driving and was about to run over one of the officersso the agents chased him in their vehicles.
The official added that the episode was recorded by the body camera of the partner of the agent who shot. The recording has not been made public.
Pending asylum application
Garcés entered the United States in 2024 through the CBP One application, a program active during the Government of former President Joe Biden (2021-2025) that allowed migrants to request an appointment to appear at a border port of entry and request asylum, according to his lawyer and his family.
The Venezuelan had a deportation order issued in absentia by an immigration judge. Garcés did not attend the hearing because the notification arrived at an old address, even though he claims that he had informed the Government of his change of address, according to Lincoln-Goldfinch.
So far this year, judges have ordered the deportation of 281,867 migrants who did not show up for their hearings. Of them, 90,288 had asylum applications, according to official data.
