ICE tries to Deny Due Process to Pomona Day Laborers Despite Clear Evidence of Long-Term Residency

Pomona, CA — At a press conference and emergency rally this morning outside Pomona City Hall, immigrant rights organizations, legal advocates, and family members of three detained day laborers denounced ICE’s latest attempt to block their release and fast-track deportation proceedings — a move advocates say is rooted in falsehoods and a blatant disregard for due process.

During a bond hearing held this morning for the three detained workers — Jesus Domingo Ros, Edwin Roberto Juarez Cobon, and Yoni Ronaldo Jacinto Garcia — ICE claimed that the local immigration judge lacks jurisdiction because the men had been in the country for “less than one year.” This assertion was used to argue that the workers are ineligible for a bond hearing and should instead be subjected to expedited removal.

That claim is false.

“All three men have been living in the United States for more than two years,” said Alexis Teodoro, Worker Rights Director at the Pomona Economic Opportunity Center (PEOC). “ICE is trying to push through expedited deportations by lying to the court and denying these men the most basic rights—like the right to be heard. Looking for work is not a crime. Waiting for a job opportunity outside a Home Depot isn’t a threat to anyone. It’s an act of necessity and resistance.”

Advocates argue that the administration is deliberately denying the workers the right to due process, bypassing immigration courts, and accelerating deportations in defiance of both constitutional protections and recent court rulings.

“This is not just an injustice,” said Manuel Vicente of the National Day Laborer Organizing Network (NDLON).
“It’s a denial of due process. A denial of the basic right to be heard, to defend oneself, to access justice. Our fight is for the truth, for the dignity of work, and for a justice system that does not discriminate based on skin color, immigration status, or economic condition. We demand the immediate release of these workers and an end to the raids that punish poverty.”

The raid that led to their detention occurred on April 22, 2025, outside a Home Depot in Pomona, where the jornaleros were looking for work. It followed the same unconstitutional pattern as a previous Border Patrol raid in Kern County, which a federal court ruled unlawful last week. That ruling emphasized that warrantless, race-based immigration enforcement is a violation of the Fourth Amendment.

“We will combat these lies with the truth,” Teodoro added. “We will raise our voices and organize. Because:
1. All of the detained workers have been in this country for more than two years.
2. The administration is actively denying them due process and the right to a bond hearing.
3. The targeting of these workers is not just illegal — it is immoral.”

Advocates are demanding:

• The immediate release of the Pomona day laborers

• A full and fair bond hearing before a judge

• An end to unconstitutional raids and the criminalization of workers