A group of migrants has filed a federal class action suit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and other state officials, alleging that they carried out a "scheme to defraud vulnerable immigrants to advance a political motive" when they chartered planes to fly them from Texas to Martha's Vineyard last week.
"Defendants and their unidentified accomplices designed and executed a premeditated, fraudulent, and illegal scheme centered on exploiting this vulnerability for the sole purpose of advancing their own personal, financial, and political interests," says the lawsuit, filed on Tuesday in the US District Court of Massachusetts.
The lawsuit describes the experiences of Yanet and her family, as well as Pablo, and Jesus, all identified with the last name pseudonym "Doe," who escaped a humanitarian crisis in Venezuela, "only for the defendants to use them as pawns in a political stunt." It also lists Alianza Americas, a network of migrant-led organizations, as a plaintiff.
The lawsuit accuses DeSantis and others of violations of the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendment protections against illegal seizure and false arrest and more. They say they were falsely imprisoned and that DeSantis and others committed fraud, intentionally inflicted emotional distress, and "engaged in a conspiracy" to deprive them of their civil rights.
The lawsuit, filed by Lawyers for Civil Rights, also names Florida Transportation Secretary Jared Perdue, as well as his department and the state of Florida.
The lawsuit reveals details about the migrants' trip that have not previously been made public, including what happened in the days leading up to the flight.
At least five people — one who provided the name "Perla," the other provided the name "Emanuel" — waited outside of shelters in Texas and provided migrants with $10 gift certificates to tell them about the transport "pretending to be good Samaritans offering humanitarian assistance."
According to the lawsuit, the people who lured the migrants away told them they'd receive employment, housing, schooling, and other assistance if they agreed to fly to other states.
Once they agreed, they received free hotel lodging in Texas. The attorneys representing the plaintiffs wrote that the arrangement "sequestered" the migrants away "from the possibility of actual good Samaritans finding out how the class members were being abused."
Migrants said they were falsely told they'd be heading to Boston or to Washington, DC, and provided with official-looking materials about immigration.
But on the day of the flight, on September 14, 2022, the migrants were informed just before landing that they were going to the island of Martha's Vineyard. They found themselves abandoned on the tarmac in the dark, according to the suit, and could not get ahold of the people who'd previously arranged for their travel.
"These immigrants, who are pursuing the proper channels for lawful immigration status in the United States, experienced cruelty akin to what they fled in their home country," the lawsuit says. "Defendants manipulated them, stripped them of their dignity, deprived them of their liberty, bodily autonomy, due process, and equal protection under the law, and impermissibly interfered with the Federal Government's exclusive control over immigration in furtherance of an unlawful goal and a personal political agenda."
The plaintiffs aren't asking for specific damages but wrote that the economic, emotional, and constitutional harms are a minimum of $75,000.
DeSantis's office responded in a statement to Insider calling the lawsuit "opportunistic" and "political theater" on the part of activists, and the office shared a copy of what they said was a signed consent form.
"The transportation of the immigrants to Martha's Vineyard was done on a voluntary basis. The immigrants were homeless, hungry, and abandoned – and these activists didn't care about them then," the statement continued. "Florida's program gave them a fresh start in a sanctuary state and these individuals opted to take advantage of chartered flights to Massachusetts. It was disappointing that Martha's Vineyard called in the Massachusetts National Guard to bus them away from the island within 48 hours."
Update 9/20/2022: This story was updated to include comment from Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis's office.
