A Muscatine man who nearly died after being shot during an attempted robbery has been held in federal custody for months after a visit to the local police station, a case that highlights new U.S. immigration enforcement policies that have led to the detention of crime victims and a sharp decline in certain visa applications.
Felipe de Jesus Hernandez Marcelo, 28, was shot in the early morning of June 21 and underwent surgery at the University of Iowa hospital after a bullet passed through his left wrist and right thigh, according to court filings and police accounts. Days after leaving the hospital on crutches to retrieve belongings from an impound lot, Hernandez was arrested on a seven-month-old bench warrant arising from an unpaid traffic ticket and turned over to Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Hernandez has been detained at the Muscatine County Jail, which routinely serves as an ICE holding facility, and testified in federal court that he endured days without prescribed medication, was confined to a single cell, and has been unable to attend follow-up medical appointments or receive physical rehabilitation needed for his recovery. He has been separated from his 9-year-old son and said his family has struggled financially while he is detained.
A federal judge, U.S. District Judge Rebecca Goodgame Ebinger, ruled Sept. 10 that Hernandez was not subject to mandatory detention and ordered immigration authorities to provide him a bond hearing within seven days, saying his confinement was causing “irreparable harm.” A hearing is scheduled in the coming days. Hernandez’s attorney, Emily Rebelskey, argued in filings that continued confinement was imperiling his ability to recover normal use of his leg.
Hernandez’s detention follows a shift in federal immigration enforcement that critics say has made crime victims in the United States more vulnerable to arrest and deportation. In January, ICE rescinded a policy that had generally discouraged detaining and seeking to remove immigrants who reported crimes and who sought U and T visas — protections available to certain crime and trafficking victims and their qualifying relatives. The agency has pointed to President Donald Trump’s executive order titled “Protecting the American People Against Invasion,” which calls for a broad enforcement of immigration laws.
Under the new guidance, ICE agents may detain crime victims, including some who have applied for or hold U and T visas, provided agents coordinate with local police to avoid compromising criminal investigations. The change removed language that previously encouraged officers to consider a person’s victim status as a factor weighing against detention. The number of U visa applications fell by nearly half in the quarter that ended in March, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services data that covered the first months of the administration’s second term.
Immigration lawyers and advocates say the policy shift discourages victims from reporting crimes or cooperating with law enforcement. "This type of thing is now the new normal. This scenario is happening every day in every city," said Dan Kowalski, a retired attorney and long-time immigration law expert. He said routine contact with local authorities can now expose undocumented immigrants to ICE detention.
Local law enforcement in Muscatine had previously sought to reassure residents that officers would not inquire about immigration status and that victims and witnesses should not be afraid to contact police. Muscatine Police Chief Anthony Kies said his department arrested Hernandez because of the outstanding warrant and transferred him to the county jail, where ICE routinely makes custody requests. "If you are arrested for a local crime and you are illegal, they will make contact with ICE at the jail and that’s how that’s dealt with," Kies said, adding he supported the practice.
The bench warrant that led to Hernandez’s arrest stemmed from a $250 ticket for driving with a suspended license issued in November. Hernandez and his attorney say he did not know about a December hearing that resulted in the warrant. Hernandez arrived in the United States in 2021 and had lived in Muscatine with relatives, working in construction, his lawyer said.
Investigators say Hernandez was lured to an alley in a quiet neighborhood after social media messages in which a woman, identified as 20-year-old Kimber Kallenberger, sought money and food on a community forum and then arranged to meet him. Kallenberger later told police she had set up a robbery with her boyfriend, 18-year-old Justin Bass, who investigators say shot Hernandez when he refused to hand over money. Kallenberger pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit a forcible felony and prostitution under a plea agreement that could spare her prison time. Bass faces charges including first-degree robbery and is awaiting trial.
Hernandez, who endured surgery to remove a bullet and bone fragments and received blood transfusions, said in testimony that he has been able to speak with his son only twice since his detention and that his mother has been fearful of visiting him in jail. He asked the judge to protect his family from potential retaliation and described fleeing abuse of power in Mexico as part of his testimony.
Advocates noted that Hernandez appears to be an apparent candidate for a U visa as a victim of felony assault and a potential witness in a criminal case, but said the local prosecutor has not yet certified his eligibility. Certification by a qualifying law enforcement agency is one of the steps in the U visa process. Muscatine County prosecutor Jim Barry did not respond to messages seeking comment.
Complicating the picture, the Board of Immigration Appeals in a Sept. 5 decision endorsed a stricter interpretation that individuals who entered the country without permission are ineligible for bond, a position ICE has advanced. Several federal judges across the country have rejected that approach, finding that mandatory detention cannot be applied categorically without case-by-case review.
Immigration attorneys say another consequence of the policy changes is that people who previously would have been released while awaiting removal proceedings are now increasingly detained indefinitely. Bethany Hoffmann, an immigration lawyer, said victims and family members fear that seeking protections could put them on the government’s radar. She described a recent client whose wife was a kidnapping victim and who was arrested by ICE when he attended a fingerprint appointment required for a U visa application; the man had a 10-year-old removal order but no recent criminal history.
ICE did not return messages seeking comment for this story.
Hernandez’s legal team has urged his release on bond so he can obtain medical care, return to work to support his family, and take part in the criminal case against the people accused of shooting him. The case illustrates the clash between local policing, federal immigration enforcement and victims’ access to legal protections, and comes as immigration courts and federal agencies consider how to implement changes set by the administration.
A bond hearing ordered by Judge Ebinger will determine whether Hernandez can be released while his immigration case proceeds. Hernandez and his supporters said his detention since late June has already had lasting consequences for his health and his family’s finances.