Hilda Ramirez Sanan and her two US citizen children were ‘illegally and forcefully detained’, the lawsuit alleges

A US immigrant with legal status and her two American children have filed a lawsuit against ICE, after they were hospitalized following a “violent” and “unlawful” detention in Massachusetts.

Hilda Ramirez Sanan, a green card holder who has lived in the United States for more than 20 years, and her two US citizen children were “illegally and forcefully detained”, the lawsuit alleges.

The lawsuit says Ramirez Sanan and her children were detained while accompanying her brother-in-law to a court hearing in Chelsea, Massachusetts, on 26 September. When they arrived at the courthouse four unmarked ICE vehicles “surrounded and blocked” Ramirez Sanan’s car, according to the lawsuit.

“Within seconds, and without stopping to identify themselves, ask any questions, or give any warnings or orders for the passengers to follow, the officers surrounded the car and used a sharp tool to shatter both the front and back windows on the driver side, hitting Ramirez Sanan and [her brother-in-law] with shards of glass,” the lawsuit says.