A lawyer for the family of Liam Ramos said they had entered the U.S. through a port of entry and have been following the legal process of their asylum claim.

COLUMBIA HEIGHTS, Minn. — The day after ICE arrested a 5-year-old boy, his lawyer is sharing new details about how he and his family came to the U.S., directly disputing claims made by the Vice President. 

Liam Ramos, a student in Columbia Heights, was detained on Tuesday afternoon along with his father. The arrest has sparked widespread criticism, with Columbia Heights Public Schools Superintendent Zena Stenvik saying, “You can’t tell me this child is going to be classified as a violent criminal.” 

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Vice President JD Vance held a press conference in Minneapolis on Thursday, where a reporter asked about Liam. Vance appeared sympathetic at first but then claimed that the boy’s father is an “illegal alien.” 

“What are they (ICE) supposed to do? Let a 5-year-old freeze to death?” Vance said about why the boy was also taken into custody. 

Attorney Marc Prokosch said the father is not an “illegal alien” and has been following the law in seeking asylum. According to Prokosch, the family entered the U.S. in 2024 through a port of entry, has been following the legal process, appearing at court hearings, and does not pose a safety risk. He said they “did everything right when they came in,” and the boy’s arrest is “inhumane and unacceptable.” 

Prokosch said the father and son are being held at a facility in San Antonia, Texas, and he believes they are together but has not been able to confirm this or get in direct contact with them. He said they may file a habeas corpus petition, but they need to go to Texas to file. He also said that having detainees taken to Texas makes it harder for their attorneys in Minnesota to work with them. He said while he has had indirect contact with the pair, he has not yet been able to get on a call.

Prokosch added that he has not been able to find any criminal charges against the boy’s father in Minnesota. KARE 11 has also not been able to find criminal charges. 

The Department of Homeland Security claims its agents tried to get Liam’s mother to take the boy, but she allegedly refused and “abandoned” him. Columbia Heights school board chair Mary Granlund disputes this, saying she was there when the arrest was taking place and the mother was not outside. She said multiple people, including herself, tried to say they could take Liam, but agents did not turn him over. 

A reporter asked Granlund if she believed ICE was using Liam as “bait” to arrest his father, to which she answered, “Yes.”

“It’s very clear from the pictures, from the videos, from first-hand accounts – I was there. This is what happened,” she said.