Donald Trump’s administration has launched a nearly $1 million lawsuit against an immigrant who remained in the United States in defiance of a court order forcing his departure.
The Trump administration has filed a $1 million lawsuit against Marta Alicia Ramirez Velez for defying a court order to leave the United States. The case highlights the administration’s strategy of imposing hefty fines on undocumented immigrants as part of its anti-immigration campaign. (AFP file photo)The case represents just one aspect of the president’s sweeping anti-immigration initiative and exemplifies the administration’s sweeping strategy to force undocumented immigrants out of the country by imposing significant financial penalties.
The federal suit seeks civil penalties of $941,114 — plus accrued interest — from Marta Alicia Ramirez Velez, who is allegedly living in Chesterfield County, Virginia without legal authorization.
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Who is Ramirez Veliz? Here’s everything we know about the caseHowever, the circumstances surrounding Ramírez Velez’s initial entry into the United States remain unclear. He received a removal order from an immigration judge in 2019, which was finalized in 2022 after the Board of Immigration Appeals rejected his appeal, according to the Justice Department.
In April, Ramirez Veliz was issued a notice that he would be fined, and he did not file an appeal within the required 30-day period, according to attorneys representing the government.
Officials calculated the fine at $998 per day from the Board of Immigration Appeals’ dismissal to its notification in April, amounting to about $1 million.
“The defendant has not paid any penalty and will be liable to the United States for the full penalty amount and statutory surcharges,” officials said.
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Legal experts react to the case against Ramirez VelezSeveral legal experts have blasted the nearly seven-figure fine, calling it the largest fine of its kind on record.
“It sounds like the highest number we’ve ever heard,” said Charles Moore, a lawyer at Public Justice, a public interest law firm, in an interview with Politico. “We know the amounts have been as low as $3,000 and as high as several hundred thousand but, no, we haven’t heard of anything close to $1 million.”
According to the UK Independent, the Trump administration has imposed nearly 21,500 fines this summer, totaling more than $6 billion, on immigrants who allegedly ignored orders to leave the country.
Immigrants who fail to settle these fines face the threat of legal action, debt collection and substantial tax liability.
