A federal immigration judge has denied asylum in the U.S. to the family of Liam Conejo Ramos, the 5-year-old boy who became the face of the Trump administration’s brutal immigration crackdown.
The Ramos family have been ordered to be deported to Ecuador, with their lawyers now appealing the ruling by U.S. Immigration Judge John Burns.
Preschooler Liam was photographed wearing a bunny hat and Spider-Man backpack as he was detained with his father, Adrian Conejo Arias, during an ICE anti-migrant sweep in Minneapolis on Jan. 20.
They were held in a Texas detention center for 10 days before a judge ordered them released, with Liam returning to his school in Minneapolis.
In the same month, federal agents shot both Renee Good and Alex Pretti dead, sparking nationwide protests against tactics used in ICE raids.
Judge Burns, who was as appointed assistant chief immigration judge in January 2026 after being appointed as immigration judge in December 2020 under the first Trump administration, handed down the decision on Feb. 19, according to People, but the family only shared the information publicly on March 18. As an immigration judge, Burns is not a full federal judge, and therefore works for the Department of Justice.
“We’re just gravely disappointed in the judge’s misguided decision,” the family’s attorney Danielle Molliver told CNN on Thursday. “We’re committed to the family and we’ll fight the appeal, obviously, the best that we can.”
Molliver hoped the government could greenlight a faster appeal process, which could drag through the courts for years.
“At minimum, I would hope we have a couple months,” she said.
The family also includes Liam’s 13-year-old brother, while his mother, Erika Ramos, is pregnant. Molliver told the Minnesota Star Tribune that “every day is a struggle” for the family, who do not know if their children will be permitted to finish the school year or even how long they have left in the U.S.
“It all depends on how long the BIA (Board of Immigration Appeals) takes,” Molliver said. “They don’t want to go back to Ecuador.”
She requested that the DHS consider “humanitarian factors and due process” in its enforcement of immigration law in regard to the case.
The DHS claimed Liam’s father entered the U.S. illegally in December 2024. However, the family’s lawyer, Paschal Nwokocha, said they entered legally as asylum seekers at a border crossing in Brownsville.
They were part of the CBP One app, a Biden-era program, under which migrants were able to schedule an appointment to gain entry into the U.S. to reduce illegal border crossings.
“All of us have literally watched the young boy and his family being thrust in the limelight and for what they have gone through, we are really, really begging and asking for those who have powers in this country to be sympathetic,” Nwokocha said.
Pointing out they entered the U.S. legally, he said, “They have obeyed all the laws as it applies to them, and the government seems to be in a rush to get them out, and we still don’t understand why.”
Rep. Ilhan Omar, a Democrat who represents Minnesota and met with Liam and his father after they returned from Texas, lashed out at the judge’s decision, calling it “beyond cruel and indefensible.”
“This decision must be overturned,” she posted on her X account.
However, the DHS said their actions followed “standard procedure.”
“Adrian Alexander Conejo Arias and his son received full due process and were issued a final order of removal on February 19,” acting Assistant Homeland Security Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement on Thursday.
“These are regular removal proceedings. This is standard procedure and there is nothing retaliatory about enforcing the nation’s immigration laws.”
The Daily Beast has contacted the DHS for comment.
Liam’s school have also stated they are hoping for the best result from an appeal.
“We understand that this decision will be appealed and remain hopeful for a positive outcome,” a spokesperson for Columbia Heights public school district told ABC News.
“The detention in January of Liam and his father shed light on the harm caused by Operation Metro Surge, during which many children and families have been detained.”
