FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
UPDATE: Earlier today, Kilmar Abrego Garcia was released from ICE detention after a federal court granted habeas relief under the Supreme Court’s Zadvydas v. Davis precedent. This ruling reinforces the core argument raised in the case of Kelly Yu, whose six-month detention at Eloy remains unlawful under the same constitutional standard. Northwest Valley Indivisible renews its urgent call for Ms. Yu’s immediate release.
Phoenix, AZ — December 11, 2025 — Northwest Valley Indivisible (NWVI) is demanding the immediate release of Kelly Yu, who has been held in the Eloy Detention Center for more than six months — beyond the lawful limit established by the U.S. Supreme Court in Zadvydas v. Davis (2001), which prohibits indefinite immigration detention when removal is not reasonably foreseeable.
Despite clear legal precedent and repeated community outreach, federal officials have continued to hold Ms. Yu without justification. Constituents have reached out to Rep. Abe Hamadeh’s office for months, urging his intervention. To date, no action has been taken.
“Kelly Yu’s continued detention is not only unlawful — it is inhumane,” said Brent Peak, organizer with Northwest Valley Indivisible. “The Supreme Court ruled nearly 25 years ago that the government cannot imprison people indefinitely when they cannot be deported. Yet the U.S. government has spent months waiting for the Chinese authorities to complete a passport verification process that is normally brief, and there is no indication they will act any time soon. Ms. Yu remains locked inside Eloy with no foreseeable path to removal, making her continued detention a clear violation of Zadvydas. This is exactly the kind of unchecked government power our Constitution was designed to prevent.”
Ms. Yu is the wife of a U.S. citizen and the mother of a U.S. citizen daughter. She is also a beloved small business owner in Peoria, Arizona, with deep roots in her community.
Eloy Detention Center is one of the deadliest and most notorious facilities in the country, with a long history of medical neglect, suicides, and systemic failures. NWVI asserts that Ms. Yu — who poses no threat to the community — should never have been subjected to prolonged confinement in such an unsafe environment.
NWVI also calls out the silence of Rep. Abe Hamadeh, whose own family benefited from the very compassion and discretion he now refuses to call for in Kelly Yu’s case. Records and reporting indicate that Hamadeh’s parents overstayed their visa but were allowed to remain in the United States and later become citizens because he had been born here.
Despite that lived experience — and despite knowing firsthand how complex human immigration cases can be — Hamadeh has made no public statement about Ms. Yu’s case, even though it is occurring in his own district. He has frequently criticized “government overreach,” yet has remained silent on a clear-cut constitutional violation.
“If Rep. Hamadeh can find time for overseas photo ops and right-wing media appearances, he can find time to stand up for a woman in his district who is being held illegally,” Peak said. “His silence is not neutrality. It is complicity.”
NWVI warns that Ms. Yu’s case is a disturbing indicator of the mass-detention and mass-deportation policies happening under the Trump administration. As these policies expand now that more funding is available, more people could face prolonged or indefinite confinement even when removal is impossible.
“Kelly’s case is not an anomaly — it is a warning,” Peak added. “If we allow our government to disappear people into detention centers without due process and in violation of the law, then no one’s rights are safe. We will continue fighting for Kelly until she is released and returned to her community.”
Northwest Valley Indivisible urges elected officials, legal advocates, and community leaders to demand Ms. Yu’s immediate release and to hold accountable the agencies responsible for her unlawful detention.
Media Contact: media@northwestvalleyindivisible.org