A Venezuelan Family Followed the Rules to Enter the U.S. After Being Arrested and Detained for a Month, They’re Leaving.

A Venezuelan family followed the rules to enter the U.S. After being arrested and detained for a month, they’re leaving.

by Uriel J. García, The Texas TribuneApril 16, 2026 EL PASO — In the summer of 2025, José, his wife Carolina and their teenage daughter arrived for their first scheduled hearing at an immigration court in downtown El Paso. The family believed they were going to argue their case for political asylum proceedings after fleeing Venezuela. Just over a year earlier, the family had followed the rules the Biden administration had established to enter th…

Venezuelan family who entered country legally leaves U.S. after detention

By Uriel J. García / Texas Tribune In the summer of 2025, José, his wife Carolina and their teenage daughter arrived for their first scheduled hearing at an immigration court in downtown El Paso. The family believed they were going to argue their case for political asylum proceedings after fleeing Venezuela. Just over a year earlier, the family had followed the rules the Biden administration had established to enter the U.S.: They made an appoin…

After a month in detention, a Venezuelan family self deports

Like thousands of other migrants, the family entered under the Biden administration’s rules in 2024. With Trump in office, they were locked up in Texas before deciding to abandon asylum.