Victor Avila, a 66-year-old legal permanent resident since 1967 and longtime legal assistant at Kiwan & Chambers, was detained by ICE at San Francisco International Airport on May 7, 2025, during secondary inspection while returning from a trip to Japan. The arrest was triggered by a 2009 misdemeanor conviction for DUI and drug possession, an offense for which he had already served his sentence and after which his green card was reissued twice. Avila is married with four children and six grandchildren, all U.S. citizens, including a son who serves in the U.S. Air Force; he is currently held at a federal detention center near Bakersfield, California, facing deportation proceedings. His daughter, Carina Mejia, said, "He's a productive member of society, it was a nonviolent offense, he has paid his dues, and detaining him is very unjust," and coworkers have raised over $20,000 for his legal defense via GoFundMe.