READING — A Berks County grandfather was released from an ICE facility on Friday after a federal judge ruled he had been wrongly detained while seeking protection under a humanitarian visa program.
In the opinion, Judge Stephanie Haines of the Western District of Pennsylvania called Erasmo Zavala’s detention at Moshannon Valley Processing Center “unlawful.”
Zavala was arrested by ICE on his way to work in April, even though he had applied for a U visa, a special federal immigration protection for undocumented victims and witnesses who cooperate with law enforcement. The program offers a pathway to lawful permanent residency to eligible applicants.
However, the Trump administration in January 2025 rescinded a “victim-centered” approach that discouraged ICE agents from detaining immigrants with pending U and T visa applications.
Zavala applied after helping Berks County law enforcement investigate the murder of his daughter, Selena, in a domestic violence murder-suicide in Reading. During the same attack, Selena’s two-month-old daughter was shot and critically wounded. After months of surgeries and rehabilitation, the child survived, and Zavala and his wife became her legal guardians and primary caregivers.
"This is a tremendous victory for Erasmo, for baby Selene, and for every survivor who wonders whether coming forward and cooperating with law enforcement will actually be met with protection," said Bridget Cambria, an immigration attorney at the firm Aldea PJC who is representing Zavala.
Haines on Friday granted Zavala’s request for a preliminary injunction, noting that he was able to show a “likelihood of success” on the merits of claims and that he will “continue to suffer irreparable harm” if he is not released. Haines also wrote that “public interest favors” relief for Zavala because Congress intended U visa protections to encourage victims and witnesses of violent crimes to come forward and assist law enforcement.
“This Court finds the public interest in this effort is weightier than the deportation of an illegal immigrant who [has] committed no violent crime but has assisted in the investigation of one,” Haines wrote.
Earlier this month, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services found Zavala’s U visa petition to be “bona fide,” meaning it meets core eligibility requirements and has enough evidence to merit temporary protection while the agency continues to review his case. That makes him eligible for temporary deportation protection and a work authorization.
A central issue in Zavala’s case was whether he had an enforceable deportation order from 2010. The court sided with Zavala’s defense and agreed that the removal order ICE was using to justify his detention was not valid.