A Dallas community leader who was taken into Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody earlier this month has been denied bond.
Omar Salazar has been at the Blue Bonnet Detention Facility in Anson, 200 miles west of Dallas, since he was arrested during a routine traffic stop outside of Lubbock over Labor Day weekend.
A judge on Wednesday denied Salazar bond as he awaits a hearing next month.
Salazar’s attorney, Jacob Monty, told KERA via text that they are looking into other alternatives.
He has said Salazar has no criminal history and is not a flight risk.
The federal Board of Immigration Appeals last week ruled that migrants in deportation proceedings who entered the country “without inspection” are not eligible for bond.
Salazar came to the U.S. from Mexico with his family as a child but never received U.S. citizenship. He went on to graduate from Southern Methodist University, where he was a Hunt scholar, and now works in the AI industry.
Salazar’s friends have started a letter writing campaign to show elected officials “that Omar is loved, rooted in community and deserves to be home.”
A benefit concert is being planned for Salazar and migrant families next week at Mi Barrio 214, an art gallery and coffee shop located in Southeast Dallas.
“He is someone that is truly not a criminal, truly doesn't deserve to have been rounded up by ICE,” League of United Latin American Citizens leader Rey De Los Santos told a community gathering in Oak Cliff last Saturday.
“He truly needs our support and I hope you can do that. Hundreds, if not thousands of people that have been impacted by him."
Priscilla Rice is KERA’s communities reporter. Got a tip? Email her at price@kera.org.
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