A federal judge in Detroit has promised a ruling soon on whether roughly 300 Iraqi Christian detainees will be released while they wait for their immigration cases to be re-opened.
The detainees face deportation orders for crimes, often committed many years ago. They would like their cases re-considered because they say they face persecution if they are returned to Iraq.
Miriam Aukerman is an ACLU attorney. She says the families are hoping for a Christmas gift.
“All they want for Christmas is for their father, their parent, to come home," she said. "Santa can’t bring them their parent back, but the Constitution is a lot more powerful than Santa Claus.”
The ACLU says it’s unconstitutional to hold the detainees indefinitely for immigration cases that could drag on for years.
