Kutak Rock attorneys Alain Baudry and Amanda Cefalu served as pro bono co-counsel to file a lawsuit on behalf of the ACLU-MN against the Anoka County Sheriff’s Office and the Coon Rapids Police Department for unlawfully arresting and jailing Myriam Parada in July 2017, after she was the victim of a traffic accident. The ACLU-MN argues in their lawsuit that Parada was unlawfully detained because of her race and national origin. A press release issued by the ACLU-MN stated the following:

A Coon Rapids police officer arrested Parada because he was “unable to positively identify her” according to his police report. Parada did provide photo identification, a Mexican Consulate card, which includes her name and address. However, the arresting officer did not arrest any of the other individuals he cited for driving without a license in the previous year. Upon her arrest, Parada’s family was told she would be released soon, but instead she was transferred to ICE custody. Anoka County did not have the authority to hold Parada in custody for ICE and she should have been released.

I was the victim of a car accident, but instead of helping me, Coon Rapids police just called ICE,” stated Myriam Parada. “No one should fear deportation because they needed help from the police.

“Myriam Parada was targeted because she is a Latina immigrant,” stated Teresa Nelson, Legal Director of the ACLU-MN. “She should not have been arrested, and she should not have been held in jail for ICE. She should have been released from custody after she was booked into jail.”