A Port St. Lucie High School senior who was preparing for his final football season is still in immigration custody after a traffic stop led police to contact U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Emmanuel Nelson, 18, is a senior at Port St. Lucie High School and a linebacker for the Jaguars. He was pulled over on the morning of August 19 while driving to school after police said he was traveling 45 mph in a 20-mph school zone on Southeast Lennard Road. He received a traffic citation.
During the stop, the officer ran Nelson’s information and learned that he was not a U.S. citizen. Police then contacted ICE, which placed an immigration detainer on him. Nelson was booked into the St. Lucie County Jail that afternoon, where he remained in custody on an ICE hold.
ICE said Nelson legally entered the United States on January 16, 2016, but alleges that he failed to comply with the terms of his admission and is now in violation of immigration law. The agency said he would remain in custody while his removal proceedings move forward.
Nelson’s family has offered a different part of the story. A family spokesperson said Nelson came to the United States through the Haitian Family Reunification Program and that a U.S. citizen step-parent has petitioned for him to obtain permanent residency. While that application has been pending, the family says Nelson had been issued employment authorization, a Social Security number and a Florida driver’s license, allowing him to attend school and work legally.
Before his detention, Nelson was preparing for his senior football season. He played for the Jaguars in the team’s August 14 Kickoff Classic against Fort Pierce Central, just five days before his traffic stop. His school roster lists him as a senior linebacker, and he has also competed in wrestling for Port St. Lucie High School.
His absence has been felt by the Jaguars. Head coach Everette Alford described Nelson as one of the team’s leaders and said the situation has been difficult for the players to process during the season.
“He was one of the guys who was a leader,” Alford said, according to TCPalm. “It’s really hard, as a whole team, to go through something like that during a game week.”
The Jaguars went on to lose their season opener to South Fork, but for Nelson’s teammates and coaches, the bigger concern is whether their teammate will be able to return.
“Whenever he does come back, we’re going to welcome him with open arms,” Alford said.
Nelson’s case comes as immigration enforcement continues to affect Haitian families across the United States following the Trump administration’s decision to end Temporary Protected Status for Haitians.
For an 18-year-old student-athlete in his senior year, a routine drive to school has now turned into an immigration case that could determine whether he gets to finish the season with his teammates.
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