YOU’RE WATCHING WISN 12 NEWS AT SIX. >> FIRST HERE AT 6:00. IMMIGRATION OFFICERS DETAIN A WISCONSIN WOMAN FOR THE SECOND TIME. >> LOVED ONES SAY ELVIRA BENITEZ LEFT AN ABUSIVE SITUATION IN MEXICO. FIRST CAME TO THE U.S. AT THE AGE OF 15. THE MOTHER OF FOUR WAS LIVING IN SHEBOYGAN FALLS INTO A RECENT TRIP TO THE NIAGARA FALLS CHANGED EVERYTHING. >> 12 NEWS HANNAH HILYARD SPOKE WITH BENITEZ. FAMILY DESPERATE FOR HER RETURN. >> A TEARFUL 12 YEAR. >> OLD. >> NATALIE CHAVEZ SAT ALONGSIDE HER FAMILY THURSDAY BEGGING. >> MY MOM IS NOT A CRIMINAL. >> HER MOTHER, ELVIRA BENITEZ, BE RELEASED FROM ICE CUSTODY, HER SECOND DETAINMENT IN LESS THAN A YEAR. >> I’VE BEEN AN IMMIGRATION ATTORNEY FOR 16 YEARS. I HAVE NEVER SEEN A CASE THAT HAS BEEN MORE EGREGIOUS. >> HER ATTORNEY, MARK CHRISTOPHER, SAYS. IT WAS LAST SUMMER A WRONG TURN ON A FAMILY TRIP TO NIAGARA FALLS, ACCIDENTALLY TOOK THE UNDOCUMENTED IMMIGRANT INTO CANADA ICE, TAKING HER INTO CUSTODY, WHERE SHE STAYED SIX MONTHS UNTIL HER DAY IN COURT. >> AND HERE’S WHAT’S SO IMPORTANT AN IMMIGRATION FEDERAL JUDGE LOOKED AT HER CASE AND SAID, YOU SHOULD GET YOUR PERMANENT RESIDENT CARD. SHE WON HER CASE. >> BUT CHRISTOPHER SAYS THE GOVERNMENT HAS SINCE APPEALED, REQUIRING A ROUTINE CHECK IN. LAST TUESDAY, IT WAS AS BENITEZ WAS LEAVING THE ICE FACILITY HERE IN DOWNTOWN MILWAUKEE. HER ATTORNEY SAYS SHE WAS DETAINED AGAIN. >> I WAS AT A DOCTOR’S APPOINTMENT. MY MOM TEXTED ME SAYING THEY WANT TO DETAIN ME. MY HEART INSTANTLY DROPPED. >> DAUGHTER CRYSTAL AGUILAR SAYS HER MOTHER IS STRUGGLING. >> IT’S HARD HAVING TO TALK TO MY MOM AND SHE’S FALLING APART. THERE’S NOTHING THAT I COULD POSSIBLY SAY TO MAKE HER FEEL BETTER. >> THE FAMILY STANDING UNITED ASKING THAT BENITEZ. >> DID. IS STRONG. THE ICE IS DOING THIS. >> BE ALLOWED TO WAIT OUT THIS APPEAL DECISION AT HOME. >> MY MOTHER, NO CRIMINAL RECORD, HARD WORKING, INVOLVED IN HER FAITH, INVOLVED IN THE COMMUNITY. I JUST CAN’T IMAGINE WHY. WHY WE WOULDN’T WANT SOMEBODY LIKE THIS IN OUR COMMUNITIES. >> IN MILWAUKEE HANNAH HILYARD WISN 12 NEWS. >> BENITEZ IS IN CUSTODY RIGHT NOW IN KENTUCKY, A DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURIT 'My mom is not a criminal': Wisconsin woman detained by ICE after routine check-in Elvira Benitez, a mother of four from Sheboygan Falls, was detained by ICE following a routine check-in, leaving her family desperate for her return. Updated: 6:16 PM CDT Mar 19, 2026 Editorial Standards ⓘ Elvira Benitez, a mother of four living in Sheboygan Falls, was detained last week by immigration agents. Her attorney said it happened after a routine check-in at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Milwaukee. According to her attorney, it's the woman's second detainment in less than a year. Her family is begging for her release. "My mom is not a criminal," her 12-year-old daughter Natalie Chavez said during a news conference Thursday.Family said Benitez, an undocumented immigrant, first came to America 35 years ago, fleeing an abusive situation in Mexico. "I've been an immigration attorney for 16 years. I've never seen a case that's been more egregious," her attorney Marc Christopher told WISN 12 News. "A mother, no criminal record, hard working, involved in her faith, involved in her community. I can't imagine why you wouldn't want somebody like this in our communities."Christopher explained that last summer, Benitez accidentally crossed into Canada during a family trip to Niagara Falls.The wrong turn led to her initial detention by ICE for six months until her court appearance. "Here is what's so important: an immigration federal judge looked at her case and said, 'You should get your permanent resident card.' She won her case," Christopher said. Christopher said she was on the path to receiving her green card. However, the government appealed the judge's order, requiring Benitez to check in with ICE last Tuesday. As Benitez was leaving the ICE facility, she was detained again, according to her attorney. Her daughter, Crystal Aguilar, shared her shock upon learned about her mother's second detention, saying, "My heart instantly dropped."Aguilar described her mother's struggle, saying, "It's hard having to talk to my mom, and she's falling apart. There's nothing that I could possibly say to make her feel better." The family is united in their request for Benitez to be allowed to wait out the appeal process at home. "This is wrong that ICE is doing this," Chavez said. Benitez is currently in custody in Kentucky. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson confirmed the arrest, stating that Benitez will receive due process.In a statement, the spokesperson said: "Being in detention is a choice. We encourage all illegal aliens to take control of their departure with the CBP Home App. The United States is offering illegal aliens $2,600 and a free flight to self-deport now. We encourage every person here illegally to take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right legal way to live the American dream. If not, you will be arrested and deported without a chance to return."Top HeadlinesBody recovered from Kinnickinnic River in Milwaukee12-year-old and 2 teenagers chased, arrested for armed robberyWashington Co. Board to consider naming highway after Charlie KirkWATCH Woman with no license, six children in car, charged in deadly West Milwaukee hit-and-run MILWAUKEE —Elvira Benitez, a mother of four living in Sheboygan Falls, was detained last week by immigration agents. Her attorney said it happened after a routine check-in at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Milwaukee. According to her attorney, it's the woman's second detainment in less than a year. Her family is begging for her release. "My mom is not a criminal," her 12-year-old daughter Natalie Chavez said during a news conference Thursday.Family said Benitez, an undocumented immigrant, first came to America 35 years ago, fleeing an abusive situation in Mexico. "I've been an immigration attorney for 16 years. I've never seen a case that's been more egregious," her attorney Marc Christopher told WISN 12 News. "A mother, no criminal record, hard working, involved in her faith, involved in her community. I can't imagine why you wouldn't want somebody like this in our communities."Christopher explained that last summer, Benitez accidentally crossed into Canada during a family trip to Niagara Falls. The wrong turn led to her initial detention by ICE for six months until her court appearance. "Here is what's so important: an immigration federal judge looked at her case and said, 'You should get your permanent resident card.' She won her case," Christopher said. Christopher said she was on the path to receiving her green card. However, the government appealed the judge's order, requiring Benitez to check in with ICE last Tuesday. As Benitez was leaving the ICE facility, she was detained again, according to her attorney. Her daughter, Crystal Aguilar, shared her shock upon learned about her mother's second detention, saying, "My heart instantly dropped."Aguilar described her mother's struggle, saying, "It's hard having to talk to my mom, and she's falling apart. There's nothing that I could possibly say to make her feel better." The family is united in their request for Benitez to be allowed to wait out the appeal process at home. "This is wrong that ICE is doing this," Chavez said. Benitez is currently in custody in Kentucky. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson confirmed the arrest, stating that Benitez will receive due process.In a statement, the spokesperson said: "Being in detention is a choice. We encourage all illegal aliens to take control of their departure with the CBP Home App. The United States is offering illegal aliens $2,600 and a free flight to self-deport now. We encourage every person here illegally to take advantage of this offer and reserve the chance to come back to the U.S. the right legal way to live the American dream. If not, you will be arrested and deported without a chance to return."Top HeadlinesBody recovered from Kinnickinnic River in Milwaukee12-year-old and 2 teenagers chased, arrested for armed robberyWashington Co. Board to consider naming highway after Charlie KirkWATCH Woman with no license, six children in car, charged in deadly West Milwaukee hit-and-run