Updated at 3:56 p.m.
Five days after federal immigration agents in riot gear broke down the door of her South Burlington home and detained her and two others, Jisella Johana Patin Patin was released by a federal judge on Monday.
U.S. District Court Judge Geoffrey Crawford ruled before a packed courtroom that Patin Patin, a 31-year-old asylum seeker from Ecuador, posed no risk to the community and that he believed there was “every reason to release her without further delay.” Patin Patin’s attorney had filed a habeas corpus petition arguing that her detention had been unlawful.
In an unusual move, Crawford decided to hold a bail hearing and order her release himself, rather than deferring to the immigration court system.
“This is not really contestable,” he said. “This will be a final order.”
After the hearing, Patin Patin walked out of the courtroom and straight into the arms of her husband, who had been seated in the third row during the proceedings. The two embraced and wiped away tears.
A few minutes later, they walked out of the courthouse to roaring applause from a crowd of more than 100 people who had gathered to show support and call for her release. As she and her husband walked through the crowd and waved goodbye, the group chanted: “Johana, we love you! Johana, we love you!”
Crawford’s decision followed an emotional hearing in which several witnesses took the stand to speak about Patin Patin’s family and her ties to the South Burlington community where she has lived for about three years.
Her attorney, Kristen Connors, told the judge that Patin Patin has no criminal record and works for the University of Vermont. She is raising two daughters, ages 4 and 8. They are enrolled in the South Burlington School District.
She has a pending asylum case, and her next hearing is scheduled for December 2027, Connors said.
Emma Gonzalez, a staff member at the Janet S. Munt Family Room, a parent-child center in Burlington, said Patin Patin is very involved with the organization. She regularly brings her children, especially her younger daughter, to play groups. She also serves on a family advisory committee that meets monthly to discuss how best to support parents.
“Her freedom is extremely meaningful to me,” Gonzalez said.
Monica Desrochers, an administrator at the South Burlington School District, also took the witness stand and said she collected more than 30 letters of support from teachers, friends and family of Patin Patin.
During the hearing, Patin Patin sat at a table facing the judge, wedged between her attorney and a Spanish-language interpreter. She wore the same white fleece zip-up with teddy bear print that she had on when agents pulled her from her home on Wednesday evening after an hourslong standoff.
The federal agents entered the home using a search warrant that named Deyvi Daniel Corona Sanchez, a 24-year-old man from Mexico who was wanted for illegally reentering the country after being previously deported. Connors said Corona Sanchez does not live in the home that was raided and he was never there.
“The warrant used to enter her home did not contain her name,” Connors said of Patin Patin. “From our perspective, Johana would not be detained but for an unlawfully executed search warrant.”
She said the forced entry was a “clear violation” of Patin Patin’s Fourth Amendment rights against unlawful searches and seizures by the government.
Her sister, who was also detained in the raid, remains in custody. An initial hearing for Christian Humberto Jerez Andrade, who was also detained in the raid, was scheduled for 2 p.m. But when the hearing began, Jerez Andrade was not present.
Judge William K. Sessions III said ICE has had “problems with transportation in general,” because they “don’t have enough people” to transfer detainees. Without Jerez Andrade present, the judge said he could not rule on whether to release him.
The hearing was eventually pushed to 10 a.m. on Tuesday.
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