Immigration attorneys urge people to know their rights as deportations continue

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- ICE officials say they are conducting routine targeted enforcement across Houston.

"Right now, a lot of people are terrified. We're getting calls about orders of supervision," Immigration Attorney Kim Bruno said.

Kim Bruno and her family have been doing immigration law in Houston for decades.

As immigration enforcement continues across our area, she calls on people who don't have legal status and may be in the process of getting their papers to always have the paperwork they have on hand and with them in case they get stopped.

It's something Camilo Orto told ABC13 that he's doing.

"You might know what to do, but law enforcement makes you scared and makes you forget everything, so you don't know what to answer and do," Orto said.

Law enforcement agencies, like Liberty County Sheriff's Office representatives, told ABC13 they want people to know they are not going door-to-door knocking and checking people's immigration status.

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They say ICE is going after people with active warrants.

Bruno says the Department of Justice and ICE are working together to expedite the removal of violent criminals who are here illegally. But that could impact family members as well.

"If they are going into your home and you are a criminal or they have a warrant or DUI or different crimes of those nature, they go into your home, and they can now take others as collateral...other individuals who are there living there who don't have documentation," Bruno said.

Bruno and her team have been handing out fliers with people's constitutional rights and the information of her law office so people in fear of deportation can hand them to agents if approached.

As many talk about mass deportations across the nation, it's important to note that the pace of removals hasn't changed since the beginning of the year. We've already seen a high number of removals within the last year.

The Department of Homeland Security data shows that 680,000 people were removed and returned to their countries in 2024, more than in any fiscal year since 2010.

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