ICE Must Release Mario Guevara and Obey the Constitution

Two months ago, while millions showed up across the country to protest the Trump administration's massive abuses of power, Mario Guevara, a prominent Georgia journalist who's been covering immigration and law enforcement activity for over 20 years, was detained and arrested by local police even though he was wearing a press vest and attending in his capacity as a journalist. All criminal charges against him were dropped and an immigration judge granted bond, but ICE has refused to release him, arguing that his livestreaming and reporting are dangerous. Guevara is still in custody today, over two months since he was arrested while reporting on a protest. The Trump administration has repeatedly tried to silence journalists and censor speech that he doesn't like. Multiple times across immigration cases, student speech cases, and now this case, ICE has blatantly disregarded their obligations to the Constitution and due process. Journalism is not a threat to our community – it's fundamental to our democracy. Recording immigration and law enforcement activity in public is protected by the First Amendment. Retaliating against a journalist for doing his job is an unconstitutional overstep. Congress must demand ICE release Mario Guevara from his unconstitutional detention and require constitutional obedience.