by Gold Meadows & KVAL.com StaffThu, March 12, 2026 at 4:19 PMUpdated Fri, March 13, 2026 at 10:45 AMFILE - The Department of Homeland Security logo is seen during a news conference in Washington, Feb. 25, 2015. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)ALBANY, Ore. — Lawyers for a woman detained by ICE in January at the Northwest ICE Processing Center in Tacoma, Washington say the clock is ticking with the Department of Homeland Security required to respond to its petition for her release by March 23.Court documents show Maria Loya Medina of Mexico was detained by ICE agents at the Big 5 parking lot in Albany on January 10.Following her detainment and a previous petition for a bond hearing, Innovation Law Lab has filed a new petition saying Medina was unlawfully detained and that the bond hearing provided to their client on February 4 was unconstitutional.KVAL -{ }DHS has less than 2 weeks to respond to release petition from woman detained in AlbanyThey say that's due to there being no transcript, no media allowed in, and labeling Medina a flight risk after only 15 minutes -- calling it a violation of due process."Maria belongs home with her children, not locked up in an ICE detention center. We're calling on the court to order her release or at the very least order that she's provided a fair day in court," Innovation Law Lab Senior Staff Attorney Jose Miranda said. "We are exhausting every single formal and legal means to secure Maria's release. It's enough for her to keep on fighting, and give this hearing a chance or give the federal court an opportunity to make things right."On January 28, Medina's 16-year-old son Cristian Hererra, a U.S. citizen, spoke out against immigration enforcement during an Albany City Council meeting while showing his support for a petition for a new sanctuary policy to offer support to community members affected by immigration activities.That resolution was later passed by the council."My family was negatively impacted after my mother was detained by multiple ICE agents while out briefly shopping," Hererra said during the public comment portion of that meeting. "At the end of the day, the objective of undocumented families is to provide for their children and give them the opportunities that they did not have growing up. As an older brother, I want to be the strong example for my little sister of what hardworking people like us can achieve in a country that views us with prejudice and persecutes us. And you know what, ICE won't stop me from doing that."Medina has lived in the United States for 21 years, and we asked her lawyer if she's tried to become documented during that time.He said he couldn't comment on the papers she's filed before because they entered her case at the point of her detention.He then directed us to her immigration lawyers, and we are now trying to reach them to get clarification on this question.In a statement earlier this week, the Department of Homeland Security said, “On January 10, ICE conducted a targeted vehicle stop to arrest Maria Trinidad Loya-Medina, an illegal alien from Mexico. She was previously removed from the U.S. She chose to commit a felony and illegally re-enter the U.S at an unknown location and date. She will receive full due process.”José G. Miranda, Senior Staff Attorney at Innovation Law Lab, emailed our newsroom the following statement in response:DHS’s statement is false. Maria was never removed from the U.S. and never committed a felony. DHS's own records indicate that they were not looking specifically for her, and they did not show her a warrant upon arrest. She was swept up in ICE"s lawless dragnet surveillance operation while she was buying socks for her son's soccer game. Her family needs her home now.Once DHS responds to the petition, Innovation Law Lab has until March 30 to respond to DHS's response.