South Florida woman from Venezuela back home after 6 months in ICE custody: "There may be more hurdles to come"

A Venezuelan woman is back home in Hollywood after spending the last six months in ICE custody, following a months-long legal fight led by her husband.

CBS News Miami has been following the effort closely. Last week, a judge dismissed her case, clearing the way for her release.

Cell phone video captured the emotional moment Gabriela Lozano Sousa walked out of the Baker County Detention Center in Jacksonville.

"In this moment I feel like ahhhh… when they called me, I'm like everything is working," Lozano said.

Lozano has been in the United States since 2023 after entering on humanitarian parole. She married her husband, Brandon Garrison, just two days before that status was set to expire.

How Lozano ended up in an ICE detention center 

The couple was arrested in October following a domestic dispute. That case was later closed, and Garrison was released, but Lozano was transferred to ICE detention, where she remained for more than six months.

"I feel like I lost like seven months… like I lost half my life, half one year, in jail," Lozano said.

Garrison noted the ordeal has taken a significant toll. "It's been a lot, super financially draining, mentally draining," he said. "We just want to regroup. I need to get back to work and everything like that because I was prepared to leave the country".

Their attorney, Taymoor Pilehvar, says several legal avenues were attempted to secure her release.

"We tried asking ICE to let her out on humanitarian grounds, but it didn't work. We went to a judge and asked for a bond, but he denied having jurisdiction over the case. We filed a habeas corpus petition," Pilehvar said. That petition was also denied.

Pilehvar then filed a motion to terminate the case. It was initially denied, but later approved, ultimately leading to Lozano's release.

Despite the win, the family says the situation remains uncertain. "Who knows, they could pivot and pull another move," Garrison said. "There may be more speed bumps, more hurdles we'll have to overcome".

According to Pilehvar, ICE could theoretically detain Lozano again as a visa overstayer, even though she has a pending adjustment of status application.

There is a fundraising campaign underway to help cover legal fees and the costs associated with Lozano's reintegration into society.