Congressman writes letter urging release of CA nurse from ICE custody

Yeah, absolutely. And Luwani now has a congressman who is petitioning for her release. Meanwhile, her family, friends and colleagues are all hoping she'll return soon. On September 16th, immigration officials went to the home of Anne Luwani, a Nigerian immigrant, and detained her on the spot, taking her onto a bus, reportedly shackling her and eventually taking her to Louisiana. Luwani is a nurse and teacher at the University of San Francisco. She's also the primary caregiver for her elderly father, who's battling cancer. Sam Luwani, Anne's brother, spoke with us via Zoom from his car while taking his father to a medical appointment. He said Anne's removal from their family life... The day she was taken by ICE and Lodi PD, she pleaded to my dad is in the home sleeping. I just want to go make sure the door is locked and let him know that I am leaving and he wouldn't see me when he wakes up. They told her that we don't care about who's in the house. We're here for you and you resist an arrest and put her in the van and boom, she was gone. Sam said his sister has dedicated her life to helping others, putting her own life in jeopardy to treat patients during the COVID pandemic. After not knowing where she initially had been taken, he was finally able to track her down to Louisiana, where he said he was able to visit with her briefly. He said her first thought. Was of those around her whose families still don't know where they are and had no legal aid. The funds I brought for her, she said there are people here who have nobody coming to see them or even that can fight or advocate for them outside. So she ends up putting money into their commissary accounts so they could have something. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is saying Luwani, who came to the U.S. legally in 2007, overstayed her visa. ICE has said ICE's mission is to enforce immigration law, a congressionally mandate function to protect America's national security, public safety and economic strength. The Trump administration is utilizing all lawful options to carry out the largest deportation operation in history, just as President Trump promised. We will not apologize for defending the homeland. This is exactly what the American people voted for. Now, Congressman John Harder from the Central Valley has said this is not what the American people wanted when it comes to immigration enforcement. The president told us that ICE was going to be focused on violent criminals and making our community safer. How does deporting somebody like Dr. Luwani make our community safer? Last month, he reached out to the Department of Homeland Security trying to secure Luwani's release. And so that's exactly why I wrote the letter to DHS Secretary Mark Wayne Mullen, urging for her supervised release back to California and for an end to these tactics that led us here in the first place. Attorneys have been fighting for Lawani's release. That is currently in a holding pattern. Families say that they don't even know if it's a matter of if or when this case will be heard since there is such a tremendous backlog of cases. The congressman told me that he sent that letter to DHS in October. So far, he said. He's not heard back. And we are here on the USF campus. I did have a chance to speak with the dean of the School of Nursing here at USF. She tells me that Dr. Lawani oversees a master's program for some 230 nursing students. She said that she really oversees every detail of that plan. So certainly the community here at USF also feeling the loss of her absence, guys. Yeah, it is a great program there on the hilltop. And last check from what we know. The professor is still in the states, Christian. She has not been deported as of tonight. So the latest that we understand is that she is still in the states, that she is in Louisiana. Part of the problem is that they say they're having a very difficult time getting any detail about where she is. They say she's still not officially registered in the system, so it's hard to keep track of where she is and figure out what's going on. All right. Christiane Capitan, thanks so much for that update. We appreciate it.