Leo Garcia Venegas
Role at the time: Plaintiff; construction worker
Condemned
Statement summary
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
Institute for Justice press release on Judge Beaverstock's September 3, 2026 denial of the government's motion to dismiss, with quotes from Venegas and IJ senior attorney Jared McClain.
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.