Pennsylvania man freed from ICE detention after court blocks U‑visa policy

Erasmo Zavala, a grandfather from Berks County, Pennsylvania, was released after 45 days in ICE custody, including time at the Moshannon Valley Processing Center. He had applied for a U visa, a humanitarian program for victims and witnesses of crime, but a January 2025 ICE policy change rescinded the previous victim‑centered approach and led to his detention and deportation proceedings. A federal judge, Stephanie Haines of the Western District of Pennsylvania, ruled the detention unlawful and ordered his release, criticizing the "blind removal policy" applied to U‑visa applicants. The decision coincided with a nationwide preliminary injunction issued in California that blocks the same ICE policy and protects U‑visa, T‑visa, and VAWA petitioners from detention. Zavala’s case highlights ongoing legal challenges to ICE’s enforcement of immigration rules affecting victims of trafficking, domestic violence, and other crimes.

The court order temporarily restores protections for thousands of immigration victims while the broader legal dispute over the policy continues.