SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Community leaders, educators and elected officials gathered outside the federal building in downtown San Diego Thursday, calling for the immediate release of an 8-year-old boy who has remained in federal custody for more than a week, after being detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during a routine check-in.
The rally took place during a weekly anti-ICE demonstration, but Thursday's gathering focused on the young boy's detention and calls for his safe return home and to school.
“Bring him home!” demonstrators chanted outside the federal building.
Among those showing support were teachers, counselors and the principal of Fay Elementary School, where the child is a student. School staff described him as an energetic, cheerful boy whose absence has been deeply felt across campus.
“He's the most energetic boy, like the rest of our students,” said school counselor Dorschella James. “He's amazing, always had a smile on his face.”
James said the past week has been especially difficult for students and staff, with many children asking about their classmate and expressing fear about their own safety.
“For our campus, we've seen a decline in our attendance,” James said. “A lot of fear of coming to school, not knowing if their students are going to be taken or anything like that.”
Karen Pohl, the woman who recorded the detention, says she shared the footage because she wanted people to see what can happen during ICE check-ins. She's an immigration court observer, who volunteers at the federal building three days a week.
“Because it was such an egregious act, I feel comfortable that everybody in America needs to know about this,” Pohl said.
According to advocates representing the family, the boy went to the ICE check-in with his uncle. The family is originally from Haiti, and the child's father was deported to Mexico in 2025.
ICE has said the uncle was not the child's legal guardian and, citing a federal human trafficking prevention law, authorities took the boy into government custody.
Haitian community leaders and elected officials have continued to call for the child's release, while school staff and supporters say they want him safely reunited with his family and back in the classroom.
The Office of Refugee Resettlement has not provided ABC 10News with information about the child's whereabouts, saying it does not comment on individual cases.
