Salt Lake City attorneys are lining up a $56 million claim against the federal government, saying Immigration and Customs Enforcement unlawfully detained and deported a young Venezuelan man who then ended up inside El Salvador’s notorious CECOT prison. In a notice of intent to sue, the legal team says the money would compensate for the physical and psychological injuries their client allegedly suffered while locked up overseas.
The man, identified in legal filings only as "Johnny Hernandez," was taken into custody after entering the United States last August. His lawyers say he was later placed on one of the administration’s deportation flights and transferred to CECOT, the country’s high-security Terrorism Confinement Center.
Notice Of Claim Filed In Utah
The Salt Lake City firm filed a formal notice on Tuesday that it intends to hold President Donald Trump and multiple federal immigration agencies responsible, a procedural move that forces an administrative response from Washington. The filing names the Department of Homeland Security, ICE, the State Department and the Justice Department as defendants and seeks $56 million in damages.
According to KSL, the notice is effectively the opening shot in what could become a federal lawsuit if the government does not provide an acceptable response within six months.
Client Alleges Abuse At CECOT
In the notice, attorneys describe Hernandez’s time at CECOT as a stretch of "unspeakable horrors." They say he endured shootings, beatings, solitary confinement, and inadequate medical care while imprisoned at the facility.
The timeline they lay out is stark. Hernandez was allegedly detained in San Diego after entering the United States on Aug. 22, 2024, shipped off to CECOT in March 2025, and repatriated in July 2025. His lawyers say he is still dealing with lingering physical injuries and ongoing mental health problems tied to that period of confinement.
Richard Lambert, a member of the legal team, told ABC4 the case carries extra weight in Utah because ICE has floated plans to lock up "7,000 to 10,000" people in a proposed facility in the state.
Salt Lake Purchase Sharpens The Stakes
The claim lands just as Salt Lake City residents and local officials are trying to sort out a big federal real estate play. Public records show the Department of Homeland Security recently spent $145 million on a warehouse at 6020 West 300 South, not far from the city’s airport. That kind of price tag has fueled speculation that the building might be converted into an ICE detention center.
Neighborhood groups have been pressing for straight answers about any detention plans tied to the property. As reported by Hoodline in coverage of DHS's $145 million warehouse buy, the site was originally marketed as a large e-commerce distribution hub and would need substantial retrofitting before it could meet detention standards.
Legal Path And National Context
A notice of claim like this one gives federal agencies a chance to address a demand before lawyers march into court. In practical terms, the Utah filing puts a clock on a potential lawsuit that could challenge how ICE handled Hernandez’s custody and deportation.
The case is not unfolding in a vacuum. Attorneys say the Utah claim joins a series of complaints from men transferred to CECOT who argue that U.S. officials retained constructive custody even after removal and exposed them to abusive conditions. Similar allegations have already led to related tort actions in other federal courts, according to reporting by Law&Crime.
CECOT itself has drawn intense scrutiny from international observers, and national outlets have documented its overcrowding and severe regime in pieces such as Time.
What Comes Next
The Utah legal team says it will review whatever response, if any, comes back from the federal government. If the claim is denied or ignored, they plan to file suit in federal court.
Locally, the case ties a very specific human rights allegation to broader disputes over federal detention capacity in and around Salt Lake City. It could also increase pressure on city and state officials to pin down exactly how that $145 million warehouse near the airport is going to be used. Attorneys and advocates on both sides say the next several months, as administrative deadlines hit and CECOT-related litigation advances, will reveal how far this fight is likely to go.
