Los Angeles Woman Detained at Green Card Hearing Amid Legal Dispute

Barbara Gomes Marques, a Brazilian documentary filmmaker with no criminal record, was detained by ICE during a scheduled green card interview in downtown Los Angeles, an incident that has sparked urgent pleas for help from her husband, Tucker May. Marques was asked to follow an official to make a copy of her passport, but instead was taken into custody, allegedly under false pretenses, and subjected to shackling and humiliation, including an ICE agent reportedly taking a selfie. The detention follows an alleged missed immigration court date from 2019, which the couple claims they never received notice of. Marques was initially held at the Adelanto ICE Facility in California, then transferred to Arizona, and is now slated for relocation to Louisiana, a move her legal team argues is designed to isolate her from support and legal counsel. An emergency request for a temporary restraining order has been filed to prevent further transfers or deportation as the couple awaits a judicial decision. The case highlights broader concerns about the treatment of immigrants attempting to comply with legal processes and the impact of aggressive immigration enforcement policies on families.