The case became public after Ferreira’s sister launched a GoFundMe, describing the family’s distress and insisting Ferreira has worked hard to maintain her life in the U.S., including participating in the DACA program.
She argued that Bruna has “always strived to do the right thing” and said her detention has been especially painful for her 11-year-old son, who hopes she will be home for the holidays.
Although the Trump administration has vowed large-scale deportations, ICE has not consistently made its deportation numbers public, NBC News reports.
In a briefing to Congress last year, the agency said that as of July, it had identified about 435,000 undocumented immigrants with criminal convictions who were still living in the U.S. and not in custody.
