Venezuelan migrant released from ICE custody to save ailing brother in need of a kidney

A Venezuelan immigrant who was detained by ICE in Illinois last month was temporarily released from custody to save his ailing brother in need of a kidney transplant.José Gregorio González, 43, was granted one-year humanitarian parole with supervision and freed from an ICE facility in Broadview Friday where he reunited with his brother, Jose Alfredo Pacheco, who has end-stage renal disease and needs the life-saving organ transplant, according to local reports.“I didn’t think I’d be here,” González said in Spanish at a press conference following his release, WGN reported, adding that he planned to call his mother so she could see him and Pacheco together again.“It’s been something unforgettable.”González arrived in Chicago last year and has since served as his sibling’s caregiver.He was picked up by immigration agents on March 3 shortly after the duo arrived home from a kidney dialysis appointment, which Pacheco attends multiple times a week.They were also in the process of seeing if González was a positive match for a kidney donation, NBC News reported.“He was picked up because he does have a removal order in his case,” Peter Meineck, an attorney with The Resurrection Project, told WGN.

Meineck said González was initially denied entry at the southern border and detained by ICE for several months before he was granted temporary supervised release to help his brother.He still faced a pending removal order despite wearing an ankle monitor and checking in with his ICE officer, ABC News reported.His release came after local officials, community advocates and immigration rights activists with The Resurrection Project rallied for González to be liberated after Pacheco reached out for help with the pair of brothers already scheduled with a local hospital to learn about next steps in their taxing health journey.

“This is literally a matter of life and death,” said Erendira Rendón, vice president of immigrant justice at The Resurrection Proje...