Honduran Teen Held in Louisiana Despite Juvenile Status

The Department of Homeland Security is holding Elder Chavez Carranza, an 18-year-old Honduran national, at the Winn Correctional Center in Louisiana. Chavez Carranza has been in custody for more than 200 days after a police officer questioned his identification while he was buying food in Albertville, Alabama.

Although the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services granted Chavez Carranza Special Immigrant Juvenile classification, a separate deferred-action application remains unresolved. His attorney, Dalaney Mecham, argues that the federal government is blocking the protection it already approved for the teenager.

The Department of Homeland Security maintains that Chavez Carranza will remain in custody pending his immigration proceedings and will receive due process. Meanwhile, advocates and lawmakers have raised concerns regarding the Winn Correctional Center, noting that two detainees died at the facility within a two-month period.