If immigration agents have come to Worthington, you don't have to face this alone.

You've seen how the town has changed. Days when no one goes out, the plant quiet, 10th Street empty. Maybe they detained your husband or your son. Maybe a coworker from the plant didn't show up. Maybe there's a letter on your kitchen table you've read five times. I'm Karla Santiago, and I help Worthington families stay together. In English and in Spanish.

The question underneath all of it is the same one. Will my family stay together? That's the question I answer with you, honestly, based on your real case. So you can go back to living, not just surviving.

Call our office: 612-810-7403

What this means for Worthington families

• There's no immigration court in Worthington. Every Minnesota removal case is heard at the Fort Snelling court, about 3 hours (roughly 168 miles) northeast. Preparing well matters even more when the court is that far.

• If someone is detained, the first hours count. The Nobles County Jail, at the Prairie Justice Center right here in Worthington, contracts with ICE, and people are often transferred from there to other jails. Finding them is step one.

• An ICE check-in can change fast right now. Talk to a lawyer before you go in.

• You get straight answers from a licensed attorney, in Spanish or English, in person or by video. No notario shortcuts.

Removal defense in Worthington isn't like anywhere else.

Worthington is a town built by immigrants. The JBS plant, where dozens of languages are spoken. The tiendas and taquerías on 10th Street. The Sunday morning Spanish Mass at St. Mary's, packed with more than a thousand people. The International Festival every summer. It's a community where people know each other and word travels fast. Through the parish, through the plant, through the WhatsApp groups everyone's in. Right now fear travels faster.

Many families still remember December 2006, when ICE took hundreds of workers from the plant in a single day. That memory never left, and in 2026 the fear came back hard: businesses that depend on what's posted online about where ICE is, kids missing school, families making "what-if" plans at the kitchen table.

Here's the thing. What's at stake here isn't a case file. It's a life that took years to build. The job at the plant that pays the rent. The home you fought for. The kids who only know Worthington as home. It's the seat at the table that stays full instead of empty. That's what we protect.

And here, hours from the court and from a real attorney, it's easy to fall in with a notario. You already know the man who took your money last time for "los papeles" can't help you. What you need is someone who can look at your actual case and tell you the truth about your options. Not a friend. Not a notario. A licensed attorney.

What you're really protecting

This isn't only a legal process. It's a specific set of things you've built and don't want to lose. When families in Worthington tell me what keeps them up at night, it sounds like this:

• "My kids are citizens. I can't be the reason they grow up without me."

• "If they take me, who picks them up from school and pays the rent?"

• "I've worked at the plant for years. I built a life here. I'm not ready to lose it."

• "Going back isn't safe for me. That's the part no one understands."

These are real problems. They also have real legal paths, and the right one depends on your facts. That's what we figure out together, honestly.

What your case will actually involve

Every Minnesota removal case runs through the Fort Snelling immigration court, and the honest answer is that the right path depends on your situation. Here's what the pieces usually look like.

Where your case is heard

Your hearings happen at the Fort Snelling court inside the Bishop Henry Whipple Federal Building, about 3 hours from Worthington via MN-60. The first hearing is usually a short master calendar hearing. The one that decides your case comes later. We prepare you for both and stand next to you. Because Worthington is far, our office works with you remotely: we meet by video, review your documents online, and coordinate by phone, to save you trips. And when you have to be at the Fort Snelling court, we go with you.

If someone is detained

The Nobles County Jail, at the Prairie Justice Center here in Worthington, contracts with ICE. People detained in the area are often held there first and then transferred to another jail, sometimes even out of Minnesota. That's why the first hours matter. We locate your family member, confirm the A-number, and move toward a bond request.

The check-in question

In the current climate, an ICE check-in that felt routine before can change fast. Before you walk in alone, let's talk about what to expect and what to bring.

Doing the real work, not a notario's shortcut

A real defense is built document by document. Your history, your family ties, your proof. It's the opposite of a form filled out wrong by someone who isn't a lawyer. That difference is often the whole case.

Why families in Worthington call me

My firm appears at the Fort Snelling immigration court. Defending families in removal proceedings is the work we do, not a sideline.

I was born and raised in Puerto Rico, and that gave me a deep connection to the Latino community and a real understanding of what immigrant families carry. I built Santiago Legal for one reason: to keep families together, and to protect them from the notarios who take their money and make things worse. Honest legal work, explained plainly, in your own language. Transparencia. Seriedad. Dedicación.

That Worthington is far from my office isn't a problem. We work with families across Minnesota, in person and by video, and that distance never changes the care we bring to your case.

"I don't measure a case by how fast it closes. I measure it by whether a family is still together at the end of it."

At my firm you're a family, not a file number. The attorney handling your case will actually know your story, and you'll always have a real person to call.

Questions Worthington families actually ask

If ICE detains my husband in Worthington, where do they take him?

The Nobles County Jail, at the Prairie Justice Center here in Worthington, contracts with ICE, so he's often held there first and then transferred to another jail, sometimes even out of Minnesota. Finding out where he is and confirming his A-number is the first step toward a bond hearing, and it's the first call we make with you.

The court is at Fort Snelling, almost 3 hours away. What happens there?

Every Minnesota removal case is heard at Fort Snelling, about 168 miles from Worthington. Your first hearing is usually a short master calendar hearing where the judge sets the path. The one that decides your case comes later. We prepare you and go with you. Our office handles what it can remotely — consultations, preparation, and documents by video and phone — to save you trips. And when you have to be in person at Fort Snelling, we go with you.

Is it safe to go to my ICE check-in right now?

A check-in that felt routine before can change quickly in the current climate. Before you go in alone, talk to an attorney about what to expect and what to bring.

I work at the plant and I have a U.S.-citizen child. Does that help my case?

Having a U.S.-citizen child, or years of work and life here, can matter in some cases, but whether it helps yours depends on the specific facts of your situation. That's exactly the kind of thing we look at together in a confidential conversation before anyone makes a decision.

A notario already took my money. Can a real attorney still help?

Yes. I see families in Worthington who paid a notario for work that was never done, or done wrong. A licensed attorney can review what actually happened, tell you the truth about where your case stands, and do the real legal work from here.

You're in Minnetonka. Can you handle my case from that far?

Yes. We work with families across Minnesota, in person and virtually. We meet by video, review your documents online, and go with you to the Fort Snelling court. Distance doesn't change the care or the strategy.

You've been carrying this alone. You don't have to. Call me.

Tell me a little about your case. My team reviews every message and gets back to you within 24 hours, confidentially, with your real options, a clear next step, and a plan to keep your family together.

Call our office: 612-810-7403

Confidential. In English or Spanish. In person or by video. Serving Worthington, Nobles County, and families across Minnesota.

This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship. Karla Santiago-Rodriguez is not certified as a specialist by any organization accredited by the Minnesota Board of Legal Certification. This message is the responsibility of Karla Santiago-Rodriguez, immigration attorney, Santiago Legal LLC, 12800 Whitewater Dr Ste 100, Minnetonka, MN 55343.