Ten-year-old Rosa Maria Hernandez is facing a potential deportation after a Border Patrol mishap on her way to surgery. According to NBC, Hernandez needed emergency gallbladder surgery and was taken to a children’s hospital in Corpus Christi, a town about 150 miles away from the Texas border city of Laredo.
Hernandez, who is undocumented, was brought over to the United States when she was just three months old and lives with her family lived in Laredo, Texas.
Due to the unfortunate and pressing circumstances,Hernandez’s family was forced to go through a Border Patrol checkpoint located in South Texas. Agents reportedly agreed to let Hernandez through but followed her all the way to the hospital.
According to The New York Times, Border Patrol agents followed her to Driscoll Children’s Hospital and waited for her outside of her room. Following her surgery, Hernandez was reportedly taken to a facility in San Antonio where migrant children who arrive alone from South America are kept.
Hernandez’s cousin, Aurora Cantu, who is a United States citizen, told Rosa Maria’s mother that the agents tried to convince the family to have Hernandez transferred to a Mexican hospital. The patrols also pressed for the signature of a voluntary departure form.
In an interview, Hernandez’s mother stated that her family moved to Texas in hopes of seeking better treatment for her daughter’s Cerebral Palsy. Cerebral Palsy is a congenital disorder of movement, muscle tone, or posture. While it cannot be cured, it can be medically treated.
United States Representative Joaquin Castro blames President Trump for the rather harsh policies regarding immigrants. “They’re treating her like a hardened convict,” he told ABC 7.
Rosa Maria is reportedly still being held at the facility according to Leticia Gonzalez, an attorney working for the Hernandez family. Gonzalez told NBC News that even if Rosa Maria is released to an approved sponsor, she could still be deported.
“They just refused to allow the child to go home,” Gonzalez said.