On Tuesday, the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Georgia and the ACLU of North Carolina filed lawsuits in federal courts in Georgia and North Carolina on behalf of Mark Lyttle, a U.S. citizen of Puerto Rican descent with mental disabilities who was wrongfully deported to Mexico.
Documentation was all there.
North Carolina Department of Corrections had all the evidence to prove Mark was American-social security number, the names of his parents, his sworn statements that he was born in the United States and criminal record checks – but still choose to refer him to ICE.
No knowledge of Spanish.
Mark was essentially dumped at the border-with Mexico-despite being of Puerto Rican descent. He had no money, no ability to speak the language and bounced between the streets and prisons of Mexico, Guatelama, Nicaragua, and Honduras. It is very fortunate that Mark made his way to the US Embassy in Honduras which then was able to contact his brother to bring him home.
Mental illness was obvious.
Most disturbing is that Mark was offered no legal assistance despite his well documented history of mental illness. Immigration and Customs Enforcement seemed unfazed that Mark did not understanding the proceedings against him and went ahead with the deportation.
What happened to Mark Lyttle is outrageous. But probably not as extraordinary as ICE would like us to believe. Mark's case is a chilling example of a system without checks.