The recent detainment of a 5-year-old student in Columbia Heights, Minnesota, has drawn national attention and a strong response from former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who called the use of children in enforcement actions “heartbreaking.”
“Enforcing the law is one thing,” Clinton said in a statement Friday. “Terrorizing a population, using children as pawns, is another. My heart aches for Liam Ramos and his family.” The case has shocked the local community and the Columbia Heights Public School district, where four students have been taken into federal custody in separate incidents over the last two weeks.
Enforcing the law is one thing.
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) January 22, 2026
Terrorizing a population, using children as pawns, is another.
My heart aches for Liam Ramos and his family.https://t.co/Y1pkUvBilT pic.twitter.com/TsppVxrX2e
According to the district, masked agents detained Liam, a kindergartener, while he returned home from school with his father. Superintendent Zena Stenvik said the child was effectively used as “bait” to draw family members out of their home. “Another adult living in the home was outside and begged the agents to let him take care of the small child, and was refused,” Stenvik said. “Instead, the agent took the child out of the still-running car, led him to the door, and directed him to knock to see if anyone else was home.” Both Liam and his father were later transported to Texas.
Stenvik also reported that three other students, all under 18, were detained in the past two weeks, including a 10-year-old girl taken with her mother and a 17-year-old apprehended in their apartment. The incidents have led to nearly a third of the district’s students staying home out of fear. “ICE agents have been roaming our neighborhoods, circling our schools, following our buses… The sense of safety in our community and around our schools is shaken and our hearts are shattered,” Stenvik said.
Marc Prokosch, the family’s lawyer, called the detainments “cruelty,” noting that Liam’s family has an active asylum case with no deportation orders. “Just because something is legal doesn’t mean it’s moral,” Prokosch said. “Yes, they may have the legal authority to detain a 5-year-old, but why?”
While Clinton condemned the detainment, federal officials defended the operation. Vice President JD Vance told reporters Thursday that the father was in the U.S. illegally and had attempted to flee. “So the story is that ICE detained a 5-year-old, but what are they supposed to do? Are they supposed to let a 5-year-old freeze to death? Or not arrest an illegal alien?”
🚨 JUST IN: JD Vance PUMMELS Fake News reporter's misleading question that a "5 year old was detained by ICE"
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) January 22, 2026
Turns out, this was an ABANDONED CHILD that agents saved from being stranded in the cold when his illegal alien father fled the scene
THEY SAVED THE KID, the Fake News… pic.twitter.com/Vm5olwgODh
Clinton’s statement comes amid another legal and political battle she is facing. On Wednesday, the House Oversight Committee voted to hold both former President Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton in criminal contempt of Congress after they defied a congressional subpoena related to the Jeffrey Epstein investigation. The GOP-led panel argued that the Clintons repeatedly delayed or refused to appear for scheduled depositions, though the Clintons have said the subpoenas are legally invalid and that they have already shared all the information they possess.
The committee voted 34-8 to hold Bill Clinton in contempt, with two members voting present, while three Democrats joined in holding Hillary Clinton in contempt. The measure now heads to the full House, and if approved, would move to the Justice Department for potential prosecution. Democrats on the panel, including California Rep. Robert Garcia, argued that the contempt votes are politically motivated and that the Department of Justice has not fully complied with legal requirements to release Epstein-related files.
“Enforcing the law must be done responsibly,” Clinton said, her remarks on the Minnesota detainments underscoring her broader call for accountability and humane treatment. “Using children as pawns is never acceptable—our focus must be on both justice and compassion.”
