A City Heights mother and longtime community member is back home with her family after spending a week in ICE detention. Iris Esmeralda Contreras was later released on bond and is scheduled to return to federal court Monday at 10 a.m.
Contreras, a mother of three American citizen children, is now recovering at home with a cough, a weak voice and an ankle monitor.
“I’m not a criminal,” Contreras said.
Her attorney, Cesar Luna, said Contreras is under deferred action, a protection that gives immigrants the ability to work as an applicant of a U visa.
In a statement sent to NBC 7’s sister station Telemundo, the Department of Homeland Security said in part that Contreras is undocumented and will go through due process.
Contreras has been active in the City Heights community for more than 20 years. She has patrolled to help keep children safe, worked with police at community events and traveled to Sacramento to support public transportation efforts.
Now, she said, she is afraid to walk outside her door.
Her youngest daughter, Angeles Soto, said she witnessed what she described as a traumatic moment when her mother was detained.
“I couldn’t sleep, I couldn’t eat, all I wanted to do was be in bed, I didn’t want to get up but I had to push myself for my brother.”
That brother, Luis, lives with special needs and relies on his mother’s care.
Soto said the moment of her mother’s detention continues to replay in her mind.
“It’s like, I could just be good and all of a sudden I just get clips of what happened. It was honestly really traumatizing.”
Despite the experience, Contreras said she does not plan to stop supporting the community she loves.
“I love my people, I love giving them my time.”
The family is inviting community members to come to the federal court building Monday morning at 10:00 to show support for Contreras’s case.
This story was originally reported for broadcast by NBC San Diego. AI tools helped convert the story to a digital article, and an NBC San Diego journalist edited the article for publication.