A 22-year-old woman named Dulce Consuelo Diaz Morales was arrested by ICE earlier this month in Baltimore. She has entered deportation proceedings, even though her lawyer insists that she is a U.S. citizen born in Maryland. This information comes from court filings, family accounts, and statements from federal officials.
Diaz Morales was detained after leaving a Taco Bell with her younger sister when ICE agents stopped their vehicle and took her into custody. Her attorney, Victoria Slatton, says the arrest happened without the agents properly considering the family’s claim that Diaz Morales was born in the United States. “It is an indisputable fact that she was born inside the United States,” Slatton said, per The Washington Post, adding that the case should never have gone as far as detention.
However, ICE and the Department of Homeland Security disagree and said in a statement that Diaz Morales “is NOT a U.S. citizen” and claimed she failed to provide a valid U.S. birth certificate or other proof of citizenship. DHS also mentioned a 2023 encounter near Lukeville, Arizona, where agents say Diaz Morales identified herself as a Mexican citizen and gave a birth date that matched that claim.
Slatton argues that the government’s stance relies on confusion instead of facts. She says her legal team has given ICE a Maryland birth certificate, childhood immunization records from Anne Arundel County, and sworn statements from people who witnessed her birth. According to Slatton, hospital officials confirmed that birth records exist, even if copies have not been officially released.
The dispute centers on a difference in surnames used by the government and the defense. ICE has referred to her as Dulce Consuelo Madrigal Diaz, while her legal filings list her as Diaz Morales. Slatton explains that the difference arises from her parents using two surnames, which is common in many Latino families. She argues that naming inconsistencies do not negate citizenship. “We encourage investigation,” Slatton said, adding: “The facts and the law are on our side.”
Dulce Consuelo Diaz Morales was picked up by ICE in Baltimore and moved to Louisiana despite a court order. Her attorneys say she has proof of U.S. citizenship, but DHS claims she’s an undocumented immigrant from Mexico and that she provided no evidence to support her claim. pic.twitter.com/099SY8kEpw
— audie cornish (@AudieCornish) December 23, 2025
Family members assert that Diaz Morales was born in Maryland and lived in the United States for several years before moving to Mexico around 2009. They say she returned to the U.S. in 2023 after fleeing cartel violence, which brought her back into contact with federal authorities and eventually led to her detention. Her lawyers maintain that her later living situation does not impact her citizenship acquired at birth.
Following her arrest, Diaz Morales was moved between several detention facilities, first in Maryland and then to a correctional center in Louisiana. This made it hard for her legal team and family to find her. Her sister, Lucia Madrigal Díaz, described the arrest as sudden and frightening, stating that agents boxed in the car before taking Diaz Morales. “They took Dulce,” she said, adding that agents did not ask if she had been born in the United States.
The case has now moved to federal court, where a judge has temporarily blocked ICE from deporting Diaz Morales while her citizenship claim is reviewed. This order prevents her removal as the court looks into whether the government has the authority to detain her.
Her family says the detention has already affected them, especially her young son, who has been separated from his mother during the holiday season. As the legal battle continues, the outcome will depend on whether the court accepts the government’s position or recognizes Diaz Morales as what her lawyer insists she is: an American citizen who should never have been placed in immigration custody to begin with.
