Mayor Calls For Release Of UC Berkeley Student Arrested By ICE At SFO

BERKELEY, CA — Berkeley's mayor has called on Immigration and Customs Enforcement to release a UC Berkeley student arrested at San Francisco International Airport last week.

In a statement on social media, Berkeley Mayor Adena Ishii called the arrest of Paula Valentina Albornoz Hernandez by ICE agents at SFO on Friday, Oct. 30, "deeply concerning."

"Detaining a student under these circumstances does nothing to make our community safer," Ishii said. "It creates fear among immigrant families and students who call Berkeley home."

Albornoz Hernandez, a student at UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business, has been in ICE detention ever since her arrest.

The 23-year-old has no criminal record and an active asylum case.

But a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told Patch that work authorization or a pending application did not justify Albornoz Hernandez staying in the United States.

"This administration will not ignore the rule of law," the spokesperson said. "DHS reversed the horrendous Biden-era policy that allowed aliens in our country illegally to jet around our country. Under President Trump, DHS will no longer tolerate this."

DHS said Albornoz Hernandez arrived from Colombia on Sept. 6, 2022, and was given permission to stay until March 6, 2023.

"In defiance of our nation’s laws, she did not depart," a DHS spokesperson said. "She will receive due process and remain in ICE custody pending removal proceedings."

Albornoz Hernandez's attorney didn't deny that she overstayed her visa, but said in a statement to Berkeleyside that she applied for asylum afterwards due to experiencing "severe gender-based violence" back in Colombia.

For now, her attorney is planning to file a habeas corpus petition challenging her detention, according to the report.

"This is somebody who was very much known with the government, she had been complying at every step, she was doing everything she was supposed to do and obviously excelling within the community," Albornoz Hernández's attorney told Berkeleyside.

UC Berkeley Chancellor Richard Lyons said in a campus-wide email that Albornoz Hernandez was preparing to travel out of state when ICE agents arrested her at the airport.

University officials have mobilized legal support to ensure Albornoz Hernandez gets the proper advice and representation, Lyons said in the email.

"This student is a valued member of our community, and campus leadership is doing everything within our power to support them so that they may return to their life at Berkeley to continue their studies with us," Lyons said.

DHS, meanwhile, says Albornoz Hernandez's is a "choice" and that she could leave anytime by self-deporting.

"The United States is offering illegal aliens $3,000 and a free flight to self-deport now," DHS said. "We encourage every person here illegally to take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right legal way to live the American dream."