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A federal judge has ruled that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents violated the Fourth Amendment rights of a worker during a raid at the Nutrition Bar Confectioners plant in Cato. The raid, which took place in September, resulted in the detention of 57 employees. Judge Brenda Sannes determined that the agents conducted an unreasonable search and seizure, contradicting the terms of their warrant.
The ruling came after Argentina Juarez-Lopez, one of the detained workers, challenged her arrest. Judge Sannes found that the agents had acted with "gross negligence" by not following the procedures outlined in their warrants. The government cannot use Juarez-Lopez's statements, immigration file, or any photos taken of her as evidence, according to Syracuse.com.
The warrants obtained by ICE included a "Blackie's warrant," which allowed for consensual questioning of suspected undocumented workers. However, the agents instead detained all employees without individualized suspicion, violating the Fourth Amendment. Spectrum News reports that Juarez-Lopez was not identified or questioned according to the warrant's guidelines.
This decision could impact future immigration raids and clarify the requirements for obtaining and executing search warrants. Perry Grossman, a lawyer for the New York Civil Liberties Union, expressed hope that the ruling would provide some justice for the other 56 workers detained in the raid. However, it remains uncertain whether the decision will affect those who have already been deported or are still in detention.