Spokane father and daughter released after month-long federal detention

SPOKANE, Wash. – A successful legal petition has freed a Spokane father and his 11-year-old daughter from federal detention in Texas after several weeks of separation from their community.

Arnoldo Tiul Caal and his young daughter Karla already had an ongoing asylum case when they were detained by Border Patrol in Spokane back in January, fueling the fire of ongoing ICE protests in the region.

Latinos en Spokane was instrumental in the family’s legal challenge. The organization said it had been working with the family for weeks to ensure their release, including spending three days inside the Dilley Detention Center to defend the family’s case.

“Like many immigrants in our communities, the Tiul family didn’t initially have their asylum case filed by a licensed immigration attorney and were harmed by a non-accredited individual practicing unauthorized immigration law. Many families cannot afford private legal representation and, in desperation, turn to individuals who lack proper credentials and take advantage of vulnerable immigrants. Even when intentions are good, the consequences can be devastating for immigration cases,” Latinos en Spokane said.

Texas immigration attorney Dan Gividen was one of many who stepped up to advocate for the family’s release pro-bono.

Gividen filed a petition on behalf of Tiul Caal and his daughter, saying they weren’t given due process. Court documents confirm neither had a criminal record.

He said he was surprised how quickly a district judge responded.

“Judge Garcia, in this case, pretty quickly issued a show cause order, and he just issued it pretty quickly. He gave the government less time to respond than he’s given them in any of the other habeas cases I’ve had, to the best of my knowledge,” Gividen said.

Latinos en Spokane said it will continue working with the Tiul family on their immigration case.

Gividen says cases like these are becoming far too common.

“So many of these people that we’re representing right now … they were thousands of miles away right before they ended up in Texas,” Given said.

In a Facebook post Sunday, Mayor Lisa Brown of Spokane celebrated the family’s homecoming, but also shared: “Their detention was unnecessary and their family should never have been forced to navigate this fear.”

After conversations with immigrant and refugee communities over the past year, the mayor hopes a new proposal will help other families in this situation. She and members of the city council are proposing directing $100,000 total in emergency financial assistance to individuals and families impacted by civil immigration enforcement.

“We hope that we can support our immigrant refugee communities. We believe this fund is a way to do that,” said Erin Hut, City of Spokane Communications director.

The funding proposal was introduced Monday Feb 9th. The city council is expected to vote on it in the coming weeks. If approved, the funds would go to the Spokane Immigrant Rights Coalition, who can connect resources to families who need them.