DHS States That No American Children Are Being Deported

Recent public concern over reports claiming that American citizen children are being deported alongside their parents has prompted a response from the Department of Homeland Security, which denies the allegations and emphasizes the facts surrounding two high-profile cases. Officials stress that in both instances, the parents — not DHS — elected to take their U.S.-born children with them during their removal proceedings, each presenting valid passports for the minors.

According to the DHS, Jenny Carolina Lopez-Villela was apprehended in April 2025 following multiple illegal entries into the United States, dating back to September 2019. She and her older daughter had received final deportation orders in March 2020. When taken into custody again, Lopez-Villela opted to depart for Honduras with her younger daughter, a U.S. citizen, and provided her daughter’s valid American passport to authorities as part of the process.

In a separate case, Reachel Alexas Morales-Valle, who had been living in the U.S. since 2013 without legal status, was arrested in February 2025 in Louisiana for traffic violations. She had previously been ordered deported in 2015. After her arrest and subsequent transfer to ICE custody, she similarly chose to be removed to Honduras with her two American children, presenting their U.S. passports to officials.

DHS emphasizes that both women were given the choice to leave their children with a designated guardian in the United States but chose instead to bring their children with them. The agency maintains that its policies prioritize child safety and family unity when possible. Officials have also promoted the use of the CBP One mobile application, which allows parents with deportation orders to arrange their own departure and potentially pave the way for lawful reentry in the future.

Article by multiple RFHC contributors, based upon information from a DHS press release.

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