Emilio Gutierrez Soto had been held in a Texas facility for seven months. He fled Mexico because he said he feared for his life after writing critically of the military. – as reported in LA Times

U.S. immigration authorities surprised press-freedom activists Thursday when they released a journalist -- fleeing alleged Mexican government persecution -- who had been held in a Texas detention center for seven months.
Emilio Gutierrez Soto walked out of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in El Paso late in the afternoon and expressed relief that he would soon be reunited with his 15-year-old son. "I still don't believe it. I need to wake up," Gutierrez, 46, said in a telephone interview.
The case had outraged Reporters Without Borders and other media advocacy groups. They said the journalist -- seeking asylum after purported death threats -- endured the extended detention without a hearing or adequate explanation from the U.S. government.