Colombian Journalist Released on $10,000 ICE Bond

Estefany Rodríguez, a Colombian journalist working for the Spanish-language news outlet Nashville Noticias, was released Thursday from an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center in Louisiana after posting a $10,000 bond, her attorneys announced. The 35-year-old reporter, who has covered immigration enforcement in Nashville, Tennessee, had been held for 16 days following her arrest by ICE agents on March 4.

Rodríguez's detention stemmed from ICE's determination that she overstayed a tourist visa she entered the United States on in 2021, leaving her without lawful immigration status, according to federal authorities. She arrived from Colombia, where she had faced threats due to her reporting on political corruption, and applied for political asylum before her visa expired that September. In January, she married a U.S. citizen and filed for adjustment to lawful permanent resident status. She also holds a valid work permit issued by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in February 2022, her legal team said.

The arrest occurred during a traffic stop in Nashville while Rodríguez was traveling in a marked Nashville Noticias vehicle with her husband. Her attorneys,...