Leo Garcia Venegas (also referred to in court filings as Leonardo Garcia Venegas) is a U.S. citizen and concrete construction worker in Baldwin County, Alabama, born in Florida to Mexican national parents. He is the lead plaintiff in a federal class-action lawsuit against the Department of Homeland Security over immigration raids at private construction sites.
Also known as Leonardo Garcia Venegas
What we have documented
We have documented 2 statements by Leo Garcia Venegas, in 1 case. Each statement below gives the quotation, its original source and a link to the full case.
Case updates
Follow Leo Garcia Venegas's challenge to ICE site raids
Get an email if the court rules on a preliminary injunction, DHS appeals the temporary stay, or Venegas adds his tort claims to the suit.
Important updates only. Free. Confirm your email to start. Unsubscribe anytime. How we handle your email.
Role at the time: U.S. citizen and plaintiff challenging DHS practices
Condemned
Statement summary
Plaintiff Leo Garcia Venegas said in an Institute for Justice release that, after the court's stay, he would be able to go to work without worrying that he would be arrested for no reason. The release said the court stayed three DHS policies while his case continues.
“For the first time in a long time, I will be able to go to work without worrying that I will be arrested for no reason.”
Read the official statement (opens in a new tab)Federal Court Orders DHS to Stop Detaining People With Valid Identification and Halts Warrantless Construction Site RaidsDated release (September 21, 2026): quotations from Leo Garcia Venegas and Jared McClain
Why we used this label
The case asks whether DHS's construction-site practices were lawful and justified or unconstitutional. Venegas, who says he was detained under those practices three times, says that with the stay he can go to work without worrying that he will be "arrested for no reason", which describes the stayed practices as arbitrary arrests. We labeled it Condemned. The closest competing label is a statement of personal relief that takes no position on the practices; it loses because he ties the risk of arrest to the policies the court stayed.
After the court denied the government's motion to dismiss his lawsuit, plaintiff Leo Garcia Venegas said Americans should not be detained by law enforcement without cause and welcomed the case moving forward.
“Americans cannot be stopped and held by law enforcement when they are doing nothing wrong. I'm glad my case is moving forward, and I hope it can make lasting change.”
Read the official statement (opens in a new tab)US Citizen and Construction Worker Wins First Round in His Lawsuit Over Repeated Unconstitutional Detentions · Institute for Justicefull press release
Why we used this label
Venegas's statement condemns being 'stopped and held' by law enforcement 'when doing nothing wrong,' directly criticizing the DHS detention practices challenged in the case as unjustified.
A U.S. citizen construction worker in Alabama was detained by ICE three times despite showing a valid REAL ID each time. His lawsuit challenges DHS's warrantless site raids, and a federal judge temporarily blocked the practices in September 2026.
