Judge Blasts ICE Over ‘Appalling’ Arrest of Dentist - Newsweek

A federal judge in Minnesota ordered immigration authorities to immediately release a Canadian dentist and father who was detained by ICE after an immigration hearing notice was sent to an address that government records indicated was no longer current.

U.S. District Judge Michael J. Davis, a Clinton appointee, ruled Sunday that the arrest and detention of William Virgil Lizardo, a 32-year-old dentist from Mississauga, Ontario, violated the Fourth and Fifth Amendments, finding an "obvious" risk that he had been erroneously deprived of his liberty.

"The hubris of admitting that USCIS made a big mistake, but not even offering any sort of relief is galling, although not surprising," Davis wrote in his November 1 order. He described the facts presented in the case as "appalling."

Davis ordered officials to release Lizardo in Minnesota no later than 6 p.m. Sunday and prohibited the government from detaining, transferring, or removing him again without first obtaining permission from the court.

Lizardo was ultimately released from ICE custody at approximately 9 p.m. Sunday, three hours after the judge's deadline, his attorney, Hassan Ahmad, said.

"What should shock the conscience of every American is that this was a case where the government knew it made a huge mistake, sending a deportation notice to an address it knew was stale, but even after the case was reopened, they persisted in fighting to keep Dr. Lizardo detained," Ahmad told Newsweek.

He said officials tried to have Lizardo’s habeas petition dismissed without first seeking the court’s permission and urged him to accept voluntary departure to Canada for his client, describing it as the “quickest way out of detention.”

Ahmad said he was not told the time or location of Lizardo’s planned release and that Lizardo’s wife was told it might not happen Sunday night. He said Sherburne County Jail subsequently indicated it would not release Lizardo despite being provided the federal court order because it “had to wait for ICE.”

The dispute prompted the court to schedule an emergency Zoom hearing for 9:30 p.m. Sunday, according to Ahmad. He said the hearing was canceled after Lizardo was released shortly before 9 p.m.

Federal judges and the Trump administration have repeatedly been at odds over the limits of ICE’s enforcement authority, particularly in cases involving due process protections. The administration and DHS officials have frequently criticized rulings restricting immigration enforcement, accusing some judges of overstepping their authority and obstructing the administration’s agenda.

Newsweek has contacted the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for comment via email.

Lizardo entered the United States in 2019 on an F-1 student visa to attend the University of Minnesota School of Dentistry, according to court filings. He graduated in 2023 and married a U.S. citizen who had been his dental school classmate. Their daughter was born in April 2025.

His wife filed a petition for an alien relative in September 2023, while Lizardo applied to adjust his status to permanent residency. The relative petition was approved in January 2025, according to the court.

Lizardo practiced dentistry in federally designated shortage areas until his work authorization was revoked and later volunteered at a low-cost clinic in Burnsville, Minnesota, according to court documents.

USCIS denied his application for permanent residence in January 2026 because the agency said he had not provided a certified Ontario court record related to a 2012 charge that had been withdrawn after diversion. Lizardo appealed the decision, and that appeal remained pending at the time of Davis' ruling.

The following month, DHS issued him with a Notice to Appear for a March 26 immigration court hearing. But according to Davis' order, the notice was sent to an address that conflicted with more recent address information in USCIS' possession. Lizardo did not attend the hearing and was ordered removed in his absence, per the court filings.

He did not learn about the notice, hearing, or removal order until October 23, when he appeared with an attorney for an immigration interview in St. Paul, according to the order. Two ICE agents arrested him at the end of the interview, and he was taken to the Sherburne County Jail.

Two days later, Lizardo asked an immigration court to rescind the removal order and reopen his case on the grounds that he had not received notice of the hearing. The immigration court granted the motion on October 28 after finding he had provided sufficient evidence of lack of notice.

Federal officials argued the case should be dismissed because Lizardo's immigration proceedings had been reopened and he was now being held under a different provision of immigration law. Davis rejected the argument, finding there was no new warrant or custody determination supporting his detention and that authorities had not shown evidence that he was a flight risk.

Judge Davis pointed to Lizardo's record of appearing for immigration appointments when he received notice, keeping USCIS informed of his address changes and maintaining family and community ties.

"It strains credulity to think that such a petitioner would flee," Davis wrote.

Davis granted Lizardo's petition for a writ of habeas corpus and ordered him released on his own recognizance. The judge also ordered authorities to return his personal belongings and barred officials from re-detaining or removing him without first seeking the court's approval.

The court said any future request to detain Lizardo must identify the legal authority and any materially changed circumstances supporting the request. The government would bear the burden of showing by clear and convincing evidence that conditions of release could not reasonably ensure his appearance and the safety of the community.

The ruling does not grant Lizardo permanent residency or resolve his underlying immigration case. His immigration proceedings remain reopened following the decision to rescind the earlier removal order.

"The government's behavior was utterly pathetic and shameful. Are they so beholden to the decrepit whims of a fascist, racist administration that they forgot what it means to stand up for the Constitution? How about just doing the right thing? This entire nightmare was a paperwork error. And they literally made a federal case out of it," Ahmad said.

Update, 11/02/26, 9:48 a.m. ET: This article was updated with comment from Hassan Ahmad.

Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Matthew Cannon, Trevor Davies and Tony Phillips.