Hodgson praises ruling against release of ICE detainees from Bristol County jail

A ruling this week by the First Circuit United States Court of Appeals denied a release petition filed by activists on behalf of detainees in Immigration and Customs Enforcement Custody at the Bristol County House of Corrections in Dartmouth.

“The decision that was just handed down by the First Circuit Court of Appeals denying criminal illegal aliens release from our ICE detention facility is not only a major victory for the citizens and legal residents of Bristol County, but for people throughout our nation,” Bristol County Sheriff Thomas M. Hodgson said. “It has always been my belief that law enforcement and our justice system have a fundamental responsibility to do everything in our power to maximize our potential to keep our citizens safe. America’s Sheriffs have worked for years to forge and foster relationships with law enforcement partners on the local, state and national level, and this First Circuit decision just helps us reaffirm that we are doing all we can to keep our neighborhoods as safe as possible.”

Last year, U.S. District Court Judge William Young granted release to many ICE detainees in the custody of the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Some individuals who were denied release due to serious criminal histories appealed to the First Circuit through the Harvard Law School Immigration Clinic. This week, the First Circuit denied their petition.

“Each of the petitioners here, as the district court knew, had committed serious, violent crimes, many of which were felonies,” Judge Sandra L. Lynch wrote in the decision. “Based on their criminal histories, it was reasonable to deny bail to these petitioners because they each posed dangers to the community and/or were flight risks.”

According to the BCSO, the ICE detainees who sought and were denied release who are still in custody of the Bristol County Sheriff’s Office are, according to the decision:

-Aires Da Graca, who has been convicted of carjacking, domestic violence offenses, drug possession and trespassing.

-Conroy Lewis, who has been convicted of carrying a dangerous weapon, reckless endangerment, criminal trespass and possession with intent to sell a controlled substance.

-Joao Amada, who has been convicted of felony armed robbery, aggravated assault with a firearm, felony burglary, and most recently, carrying a firearm without a license.

-Fred Kayitare, who has been convicted of two counts of assault and one count of unlawful sexual touching.

Additionally, Flavio Prado Junior, who is no longer in the Bristol County House of Corrections but at another facility in Massachusetts, has an outstanding arrest warrant in Brazil, where he was convicted of rape and had escaped from a Brazilian prison before coming to the United States.

“America’s Sheriffs have said and keep saying that criminal illegal immigrants pose a significant public safety risk to their communities, so I commend the First Circuit with agreeing and keeping these dangerous criminals behind bars rather than roaming around our neighborhoods,” Sheriff Hodgson said.

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