Lawyers for some of the Venezuelans sent to a notorious prison in El Salvador accuse the U.S. government of misinterpreting their clients' tattoos when they used body art to determine who was a member of the Tren de Aragua gang and subject to removal under the Alien Enemies Act.
Franco Jose Caraballo Tiapa, a married barber living in Texas, has a tattoo of a clock that caught the attention of an immigration enforcement official, said Tiapa's attorney Martin Rosenow.
"He pointed out the tattoo," Rosenow said. "That's when he gets taken into custody."
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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has said homeland security used a "litany" of criteria to ensure the agency is deporting "foreign terrorists."
"Our agents on the front lines take deporting these people with the utmost seriousness," Leavitt told reporters March 31.
Tattoos do appear to be among the factors the Trump administration considered when deciding who was a member of Tren de Aragua.
A document filed in federal court by a lawyer for the ACLU shows the government looking for "tattoos denoting membership and loyalty to Tren de Aragua."
Family of several jailed men have come forward to say their loved ones' suspicious tattoos had nothing to do with any gang.
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Tiapa got the tattoo of a clock to honor his daughter, Rosenow said.
"He tattooed the hour of her birth on his arm as a pocket watch," Rosenow said. "These individuals were never given a chance to fight those determinations before they were sent to El Salvador."
An attorney for another detainee has said the government determined their client was part of Tren de Aragua based in part on a tattoo that was actually part of a soccer team logo.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that future detainees should have a day in court before being deported. The decision comes too late for the 289 Venezuelans flown to El Salvador in March.
