CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — U.S. District Court Judge Travis McDonough approved a settlement to settle claims regarding the 2018 ICE raid of a plant in Grainger County, Monday.
The settlement was divided in two parts, the first was a class action settlement for the people who were detained during the raid, and the second part was paid to six named plaintiffs in the lawsuit.
The defendants in the lawsuit agreed to pay out $550,000 to the 96 people detained during the raid, equivalent to $5,789.97 for each person. The named plaintiffs would get a total of $475,000.
Lawyers for the workers detained called it "swift and meaningful relief" for the people detained, though the United States did not admit any wrongdoing for the 2018 raid.
On April 5, 2018, officers from ICE, the Department of Homeland Security and other agencies went into the Southeastern Provisions Plant in Bean Station, Tennessee unannounced.
The search warrant and the associated affidavit said the IRS was investigating the plant's owner, James Brantley, for violating tax and immigration law.
"James Brantley was the only named suspect listed in the search warrant for whom the IRS claimed to have probable cause to believe he was violating the law," the complaint said.
The lawsuit said federal agents detained and transported people who looked Hispanic, without asking to see their identity, work authorization or immigration status.
"The white workers were not restrained and were not handcuffed," the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit said federal agents took selfies during the raid and forced factory workers to urinate in front of others.
Over the past five years, community organizers said the workers and their families have found it difficult to recover.
The Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition said more than 600 children missed school the day after the raid because of it.
"The community is more alert to everything that's happening," said Jazmin Ramirez, a community organizer who came to East Tennessee the day after the raid. "The consequences of this raid has been felt real and hard with the Morristown community."
Most of the plant's workers lived in Morristown.
"It was a normal day," said Martha Pulido, one of the plant workers. "Everything changed drastically, in the blink of an eye."
In 2019, Pulido and six others sued on behalf of the workers detained at the plant.
"I don't think any amount of money could ever be enough," said Julia Solorzano, one of the lawyers arguing on behalf of the workers. "This was such a traumatic experience."
But, Ramirez said she's glad settlement negotiations are over, and community members can stop re-living that day.
Last year, McDonough unsealed video of the raid inside the plant in Bean Station. The video shows an agent pinning a man down, punching him three times, and putting his foot on his neck.
In September 2022, attorneys for both sides agreed to a settlement. McDonough approved that settlement on Monday.
The United States government has not admitted any wrongdoing in this case.
Congressman Tim Burchett (R-Knoxville) issued a reaction to the decision on Tuesday.
“Any abuse by federal agents needs to be held accountable. That being said, this wouldn't have been an issue if our borders were properly secured in the first place. Republican and Democrat presidents have had the chance to strengthen our border protections, but it hasn't happened yet,” he said.