The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) allowed a Honduran mother who had been deported without her 3-year-old son to return temporarily to the country so she could attend his funeral. Wendy Hernandez Reyes was deported to Honduras in January this year after being detained by ICE following a traffic stop in Baldwin County, Alabama.
Hernandez has said she repeatedly asked to be deported with her son, Orlin Josue Hernandez Reyes, but the child remained in Florida. Orlin and his three cousins were put in the custody of Hernandez’s sister’s estranged partner, Samuel Maldonado. Weeks after her deportation from the US, her son was killed on March 4.
Authorities stated that Maldonado drank heavily and abused the children, including Orlin. The 3-year-old had multiple broken bones, signs of sexual abuse, burns and head injuries. Maldonado has been charged with murder and has pleaded not guilty.
In March, acting ICE director Todd M Lyons said Hernandez had “abandoned” her son to a “violent murderer”. Later, she strongly disputed the claim, saying that she repeatedly asked to be deported with her son and even faced difficulty in regaining his custody from Honduras because she was deported without her passport and other paperwork. ICE denied that Hernandez was removed without “proper paperwork or documentation.”
Hernandez’s pro bono lawyer, Shalyn Fluharty, reviewed her case and requested the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to allow her back in the US for her son’s funeral and burial. Following an unofficial hearing on May 25, Hernandez was allowed a temporary return to the country. Once Hernandez arrived in Atlanta, immigration officers asked her to wear a GPS monitor on her left ankle.
On May 26, Orlin’s funeral service was held in Atlanta. Hernandez broke down as she approached the small white coffin. Supported by her sister and lawyer, she stood over the casket, stroked her son’s face and, as reported by the above-mentioned outlet, repeatedly whispered, “I never wanted to leave you. I wanted to bring you with me.”
Later, Hernandez, who believed her son should be laid to rest in Pensacola, where he was born, was informed by her lawyer that her stay in the US was extended, which meant she could return to the city and perhaps bury her son. While Fluharty was grateful for “the kindness and humanity” of the immigration authorities, she still believed the tragedy could have been avoided in the first place.
