Maria, a Venezuelan mother in her 30s seeking asylum, was detained in November 2024 during a routine ICE check-in appointment in San Antonio along with her toddler son. They had entered the U.S. through the southern border in 2023. During two months in detention at the South Texas Family Residential Center in Dilley, Maria reported seeing worms in food, experiencing 24/7 lights, and her son losing weight. In mid-January 2026, after refusing a $5,000 government offer to leave the country, she was released to Laredo with an electronic ankle monitor and required to continue periodic ICE check-ins as an alternative to detention.