A Louisiana Republican’s son-in-law was detained by ICE a second time, and now he says immigration raids caused ‘increased racism’

Immigration agents took César Madrigal into custody during a traffic stop in late July, even though the Mexican national’s green card case had already been approved. His father-in-law, Louisiana businessman and two-time Republican mayoral candidate Don Nance, says the raids happening under President Donald Trump have split the country and, in his words, “increased racism,” according to The Nerd Stash.

At the same time, he says he still backs ICE’s core purpose and identifies as a Republican. Madrigal came to the country on a lawful work visa before marrying into Nance’s family. Nance’s account of the July stop puts his son-in-law behind the wheel on his way to work near dawn; the reason officers gave, he says, was a missed turn signal. By the time Nance made it to the scene himself, local police were already standing alongside ICE agents, and Madrigal had his immigration documents on him the whole time.

ICE ultimately let him go once agents confirmed his green card was legitimate. This wasn’t the first time it happened. Nance says a prior detention, roughly two years back, kept Madrigal locked up for close to a year while a separate residency case tied to his marriage worked its way through the system. The strain has hit the kids hardest, according to Nance, who described a grandchild breaking down in tears and telling him, “My dad isn’t coming back.”

He says he’s still a Republican

Nance frames his objection narrowly: it’s the tactics he takes issue with, not enforcement as a concept. Anyone with a criminal record, he says, should face deportation, while those without one deserve some route toward legal status. Pressed on how he squares that view with his own party membership, Nance offered, “I am a Republican on paper,” and added that he sees himself as “more a person than a politician.”

Federal law requires green card holders 18 and over to carry proof of their status at all times, under 8 U.S.C. § 1304(e). Failing to do so is a misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $100 and up to 30 days in jail, though Madrigal’s own documentation was reportedly on him during both stops. Carrying valid paperwork doesn’t guarantee release on the spot; agents can still detain someone while that paperwork is verified, which is what Nance says happened in July.

A pending green card application doesn’t offer protection from detention either. Federal immigration law allows ICE to detain and question a noncitizen during removal proceedings even while an application for adjustment of status, the process Madrigal was in during his earlier year-long detention, is still being processed.

Traffic stops that lead to an immigration check are legal under separate authority; the Supreme Court has held that a stop is constitutional as long as police have a valid traffic reason for it, regardless of any unstated motive behind the stop.