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Detained Arizona father says he can't walk, fears he won't survive ICE custody

Aug 16, 2026 · Gilbert, AZ

Detained Arizona father says he can't walk, fears he won't survive ICE custody

Guillermo "Memo" Gallardo Barrera, a longtime Arizona resident, construction worker and welder who helped raise his two U.S.-born children, has spent over a year in ICE custody at the Florence Correctional Center following a routine traffic stop in Gilbert. His wife and family say he was healthy before detention but now relies on a cane, suffers severe numbness in his hands and worsening pain, and has not received a diagnosis or adequate treatment from facility officials. Advocates from the National Day Laborer Organizing Network and Proyecto Progreso say Gallardo has no criminal record and is being denied proper medical care. A federal court denied his attorneys' amended petition for writ of habeas corpus seeking his release. His family fears that without proper medical care or release, he will not survive in custody.

Timeline

Aug 16, 2026Family and immigrant advocacy groups publicly described his declining health and lack of medical treatment in detention
Jun 10, 2026Federal court denied amended habeas corpus petition seeking his release from ICE custody

Sources

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