NAHJ denounces ICE detainment of Nashville reporter

March 6, 2026 — Estefany Rodriguez, a reporter for Nashville Noticias and Univision 42 Nashville, was detained and sent to a federal detention center by U.S. immigration officials on March 4, despite living and working lawfully in the United States since her arrival in 2021.

The National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) denounces  immigration enforcement that involves detaining journalists.

Rodriguez is a reporter who worked in Colombia before she migrated to the United States. Rodriguez has said she left her native country after receiving death threats following her coverage on crime in the region.

U.S. Immigration Control and Enforcement officers arrested her without a warrant on March 4. She was with her husband, Alejandro Medina III, who is a US citizen. The couple was headed to the gym in a marked Nashville Noticias vehicle after dropping their daughter off at the bus stop.

U.S. District Judge Eli Richardson set a hearing on March 6 for federal authorities to respond to a writ of habeas corpus seeking her release filed by attorney Joel Coxander of the MIRA Legal Immigration Law Office.

The legal filing argues that Rodriguez was unlawfully detained. Rodriguez applied for political asylum and was pursuing lawful permanent residence in the U.S. Her active political asylum claim allowed her to live and work lawfully in the United States.  

ICE officials have said she missed two immigration interviews.

 According to Rodríguez’s lawyer and her husband, one of the appointments was during the winter storm when the ICE office was closed. They said they went to the second appointment, in which ICE scheduled a new date for March 17. She was detained on March 4.

She legally entered the U.S. a tourist visa in March 2021 before she applied for political asylum. At Nashville Noticias, a Spanish-language multimedia news organization, she has covered a variety of topics including police and immigration enforcement.

NAHJ denounces immigration tactics that detain journalists and any efforts to interfere with news coverage of immigration enforcement.

Here is the March 5 statement from Nashville Noticias:         

Official Statement from Nashville Noticias Regarding the Detention of Our Colleague Reporter Estefany Rodríguez by ICE Agents 

On March 4, Estefany Rodríguez, a reporter for Nashville Noticias and Univision 42 Nashville, was with her husband, Alejandro Medina III, outside the gym located at 2615 Murfreesboro Pike, when the vehicle they were traveling in (marked with the Nashville Noticias logo) was surrounded by several other vehicles. Several men got out and demanded that our colleague be taken into custody for reasons that the legal team will specify at a later date. 

Estefany Rodríguez was taken to a detention center.

Estefany Rodríguez holds a degree in journalism from Colombia, her native country, where she has worked for several years at various news outlets. She joined the Nashville Noticias team in 2022, covering social, family, health, police, and immigration issues. 

Nashville Noticias LLC expresses its respect for the laws of the United States and hopes that this situation will be resolved favorably for our colleague so that she can be released soon, as she needs to reunite with her young daughter and husband to continue her legal process within the framework permitted by law. Her legal team at MIRA Legal, as well as the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Coalition (TIRRC), are providing legal representation in the case and will have details on the progress and responses from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the Tennessee Federal Court.

Nashville Noticias will also be providing updates on its social media platforms and website, nashvillenoticias.com. 

We trust in the justice system of the United States of America. 

Respectfully, Nashville Noticias LLC