A judge has rejected the federal government’s attempt to dismiss a case involving a Baldwin County construction worker who was arrested by immigration officials on three separate occasions.

Leo Garcia Venegas, represented by the Institute for Justice, filed a lawsuit last year challenging the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) immigration enforcement practices. He is requesting a preliminary injunction against DHS related to immigration enforcement at job sites, accusing immigration officials of violating his and others' constitutional rights.

In his lawsuit, Venegas says immigration officials apprehended him three separate times, twice at construction sites where he worked and once when driving home. He alleges that officials rejected his Alabama-issued REAL ID when he presented it to them, dismissing it as fake. He has not received any criminal charges following his encounters with immigration officials.

In a victory for Venegas, Southern District of Alabama Judge Jeffery Beaverstock, a Trump appointee, denied the government’s motion to dismiss his lawsuit following a hearing in Mobile. Beaverstock previously ruled that Venegas has enough ground to sue, with a hearing involving both him and the government being held at the U.S. District Court in Mobile in May.

“The court’s decision was an important first step,” Jared McClain, Institute for Justice senior attorney, said Sept. 3 in a statement. “We know the Department of Homeland Security thinks it can raid construction sites without a warrant, round up all the workers and refuse to credit their government-issued IDs. Now we’ll have the chance to prove these violations of the Fourth Amendment.”

Beaverstock has not yet ruled on Venegas’ request for a temporary injunction against the raids and detentions that occur within the court’s jurisdiction.

“Americans cannot be stopped and held by law enforcement when they are doing nothing wrong,” Venegas said. “I’m glad my case is moving forward, and I hope it can make lasting change.”

GCM has reached out to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for comment.