Maxine Dexter

U.S. Rep. Maxine Dexter on Thursday called for the immediate release of a Portland woman arrested with her children in Washington state and held in immigration detention for nearly four months.

Dexter, D-Oregon, noted that an immigration judge this week dropped the deportation case against Jackie Merlos but she remains held at the regional detention center in Tacoma.

The U.S. government has 30 days to appeal the judge’s decision. Mimi Lettunich, a family friend who is taking care of Merlos’ four children in Portland, attended Merlos’ hearing and said Merlos is expected to be held during the appeal time.

Dexter, who raised public awareness about the family’s initial detention, continued to push for Merlos’ release.

The ruling on Tuesday was “an acknowledgment by the judge that there is no legal basis for ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) to detain or deport Jackie,” Dexter said in a statement.

Public pressure no doubt contributed to the judge’s decision, Dexter said.

“Oregonians should know we have power, and this moment is an exhibit of that,” Dexter said. “We must continue using our power to protect our neighbors and keep families together.”

Merlos has a pending U visa, which allows victims of crime to remain in the country legally.

Merlos was arrested in late June at Peace Arch Historical State Park in Blaine, Washington, on the Canadian border while meeting with family. Her four children and her visiting mother were also detained there. Her husband, Carlos Merlos, was arrested in Portland a few days later.

Carlos Meros was deported and arrived in Honduras this week. The children, all U.S. citizens, were released in mid-July and Jackie Merlos’ mother was released last month.

Federal authorities initially leveled “alien smuggling” allegations against Jackie Merlos, but later said they dropped them and haven’t provided an explanation for Merlos’ continued detention in Tacoma.