NASHVILLE — Following the arrest of journalist Estefany Rodríguez on Wednesday, March 4, attorneys for the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC) filed an emergency habeas corpus petition challenging her alleged unlawful detention.
On Sunday night, TIRRC filed an amendment to its petition, alleging that the details surrounding her arrest and detention indicate retaliation against her, in violation of the First Amendment, due to her work as a journalist, including her coverage of ICE, according to a statement released by TIRRC on Monday.
On March 4, Estefany Rodríguez, a reporter for Nashville Noticias, was with her husband, Alejandro Medina III, outside the gym located at 2615 Murfreesboro Pike, when the vehicle they were traveling in—marked with the Nashville Noticias logo—was surrounded by vehicles from which several armed men emerged, stating that she was being arrested by the United States Immigration Service. As of now, Estefany Rodríguez remains detained in an ICE detention center.
A federal judge gave U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) until midnight Monday to submit a written justification for the arrest and detention of journalist Estefany Rodríguez.
Later that same Monday, the judge wrote in a new order that the government has until the end of the business day on March 12 to submit a response to the court.
However, it was reported that the journalist’s legal team and the government will appear before the court for a hearing on arguments on March 17 (next Monday).
As reported Monday morning, attorneys from the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition (TIRRC), representing journalist Estefany Rodríguez, filed an amendment to their petition (submitted last Friday), alleging that the details of her arrest and detention indicate retaliation against her, in violation of the First Amendment, due to her work as a journalist, including her coverage of ICE.
TIRRC attorney Mike Holley stated:
TIRRC filed Estefany’s petition before the court because she is the latest face of ICE’s increasingly illegal and abusive campaign against immigrant communities. What happened to Estefany is devastating, but all too common, as ICE continues across the country to conduct searches and arrests without a warrant. Even the second warrant, posted by DHS on social media, shows that it was issued after Estefany’s arrest and her transfer to the ICE office. It remains clear that her arrest was carried out without a warrant.
Estefany’s detention is even more troubling given her role as a Spanish-language journalist who frequently spoke truth to power while reporting on the government’s use of harsh immigration enforcement measures to reshape our country. Removing her from her marked press vehicle appears to be retaliation against her for exercising her First Amendment rights. Freedom of speech—and especially the freedom to raise one’s voice when our government harms its people—is a fundamental principle of our democracy. Continuing to watch these foundations erode under this administration should concern all of us, and Estefany’s story is a frightening example of what may come if we do not use every avenue available to hold this administration accountable, including through the courts.
The defense presented numerous screenshots of reports broadcast on the Nashville Noticias platform, showing Rodríguez reporting from the streets and informing the public about arrests, abandoned vehicles left after detentions, as well as interviews with relatives or acquaintances of arrested immigrants.
Report translated from original version reported by Nashville Noticias
