County Fight Litigation

Baldwin County AL — Construction site raids, US citizen detained twice, IJ lawsuit

Baldwin, AL FIPS 01003

Current status: Class-action lawsuit Garcia Venegas v. ICE filed Sep 2025 in S.D. Alabama by Institute for Justice. Plaintiff Garcia Venegas detained a THIRD time on May 2, 2026 in Silverhill — counsel filed motion citing pattern of unlawful enforcement to support preliminary injunction. Raids continue.

The Fight

Since January 2025, ICE has conducted at least 15 warrantless, suspicionless raids on private construction sites in Baldwin County, Alabama. These operations have detained scores of workers — and at least one U.S. citizen twice — using tactics that civil rights attorneys call “unconstitutional and illegal.”

Key Events

The Raids

Jan 2025 onward: At least 15 construction site raids in Baldwin County, all warrantless
May 21, 2025: Agents raided residential subdivision construction; jumped fences, detained all Latino-appearing workers while ignoring others
June 12, 2025: Additional raids at construction sites
July 23, 2025: 11 arrested at elementary school construction site in Baldwin County
Summer 2025: Nearly 50 workers detained at Gulf Shores and Loxley school construction projects
Feb 11, 2025: Multiple people taken into custody in federal immigration enforcement activity across Baldwin County
May 2, 2026: Plaintiff Leonardo Garcia Venegas detained a third time near his home in Silverhill — physically restrained, handcuffed, shackled, and questioned about birthplace despite holding U.S. citizenship. Counsel filed a declaration in S.D. Alabama citing the pattern to support the pending preliminary-injunction motion (UTV44, May 5, 2026)

The Lawsuit: Garcia Venegas v. ICE

Leonardo Garcia Venegas, a U.S. citizen and concrete worker, was detained by ICE twice during construction site raids despite presenting proof of citizenship. In both instances, agents racially profiled workers, detaining everyone who “looked Latino” while ignoring non-Latino workers.

Filed: September 30, 2025
Court: U.S. District Court, Southern District of Alabama, Mobile Division
Counsel: Institute for Justice (public interest law firm)
Type: Class-action
Claims: Fourth Amendment violations (warrantless seizure), equal protection (racial profiling)
Seeks: Injunction ending warrantless, suspicionless construction site raids

Civil Rights Records Requests

In November 2025, three organizations filed public records requests targeting the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office:

Alabama Coalition for Immigrant Justice
Hispanic and Immigrant Center of Alabama
Center for Constitutional Rights

Requests targeted agreements with ICE, payments received, and documentation of raids on May 21 and June 12.

Economic Impact

Fortune reported that Alabama builders are “rethinking deportations” as raids cause hundreds of immigrant construction workers to disappear from the workforce. The construction industry, heavily dependent on immigrant labor, faces worker shortages as raids continue.

Why This Matters

Baldwin County is a test case for the limits of warrantless workplace immigration enforcement. The Garcia Venegas lawsuit — brought by the Institute for Justice, a libertarian-leaning public interest firm — has potential to set Fourth Amendment precedent applicable nationwide. When even right-leaning legal organizations are challenging ICE tactics, the constitutional overreach is extreme. The racial profiling component (detaining all Latino workers regardless of citizenship) adds an equal protection dimension.

Sources

This research is published at The RAMM — investigative reporting on the detention pipeline.

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