Dylan Lopez Contreras, the first New York City public school student detained by federal immigration officials during President Donald Trump\u2019s second term, was released Tuesday night after spending 10 months in federal custody, according to his mother and his legal team.<\/p>\n
Dylan, now 21, was a student at ELLIS Preparatory Academy, a Bronx school geared toward older, newly arrived immigrant students, and his arrest was one of the highest-profile early examples of an unprecedented tactical shift<\/a> in immigration enforcement last year in which officers arrested immigrants in the hallways of federal court following their legal hearings. Chalkbeat first reported Dylan\u2019s<\/a> arrest.\u00a0<\/p>\n Kristin Kepplinger, a spokesperson from the New York Legal Assistance Group, which had been representing Dylan in his immigration court case and federal habeas corpus lawsuit, said the reason for his release wasn\u2019t yet clear, as they had yet to review his release documents.\u00a0<\/p>\n His legal team was thankful to Mayor Zohran Mamdani\u2019s administration and to the office of U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer who\u2019d been advocating for his release, Kepplinger added.<\/p>\n Dylan\u2019s federal habeas corpus petition was denied. An immigration judge also denied his asylum claim<\/a>, but his lawyers appealed.\u00a0<\/p>\n A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security didn\u2019t respond to a request for comment on Dylan\u2019s release.\u00a0<\/p>\n A native of Venezuela, Dylan first entered the country in 2024 through a program under former President Joe Biden that allowed migrants to make appointments to cross the border and seek asylum.\u00a0<\/p>\n Dylan\u2019s arrest quickly earned local and national attention, prompting former Mayor Eric Adams\u2019 administration to file an amicus brief seeking his release, along with rallies and calls from national elected officials. Last month, Dylan\u2019s mother, Raiza Contreras, attended the State of the Union with Sen. Chuck Schumer.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201c\u201c[I\u2019m] emotional,\u201d Raiza told Chalkbeat in a brief interview Wednesday in Spanish. \u201cI\u2019m grateful to God first and foremost and to all the people who were present in this case.\u201d<\/p>\n Gov. Kathy Hochul said on X Wednesday<\/a> that she had mentioned Dylan\u2019s name in a recent meeting with Trump\u2019s border czar, Tom Homan.<\/p>\n Mamdani said the city was \u201coverjoyed\u201d by Dylan\u2019s release.<\/p>\n \u201cThroughout this injustice, Dylan has shown remarkable strength, resilience, and courage,\u201d the mayor said in a statement.<\/p>\n Even as federal immigration enforcement swept up other city students \u2014 some of whom subsequently won quick releases<\/a> \u2014 Dylan remained in custody in Western Pennsylvania for nearly a year. In a September interview with Chalkbeat from detention<\/a>, he described the frustration and depression of having his life put on hold.\u00a0<\/p>\n