( CNN ) -- An undocumented immigrant who was shackled during labor will be allowed to seek legal status under a special visa that can be conferred to crime victims , a federal judge ruled this week . Juana Villegas , who previously won $ 200,000 in a lawsuit against the Tennessee sheriff 's office involved in the incident , was also awarded $ 1.1 million in lawyers ' fees and other expenses . `` It 's a big victory for Mrs. Villegas , '' said Elliott Ozment , her attorney , about the Thursday ruling from U.S. District Judge William Haynes Jr. Ozment said his client -- a Mexican national -- will pursue a U-visa , a status that can be given to victims of crimes who are in the country illegally . The final decision rests with the U.S . Citizenship and Immigration Services . Karen West , a spokeswoman for the Davidson County Sheriff 's Office stressed the ruling may not be the last word . `` We disagree that she ( Villegas ) was a victim and the certification is not a resolution of the case , which is still being appealed , '' she said . Villegas ' story began on July 3 , 2008 , when she was nine months pregnant and driving home with her other children from a doctor 's appointment in metro Nashville , Tennessee . A police officer pulled her over and , according to Villegas ' complaint , decided to arrest her for driving without a license because the officer suspected she was in the country illegally . The decision to arrest her was influenced by a controversial agreement between the police department and the federal government that allowed local officers to help enforce immigration laws , known as section 287 ( g ) of the Immigration and Nationality Act . She was transported to a detention center , where two days later , she went into labor . According to court documents , Villegas was taken to Nashville General Hospital where she was placed on a gurney with her hands and feet shackled . Once in her hospital room , two Davidson County sheriff 's deputies refused to leave the room while she changed into her hospital gown , and unplugged her phone so she could n't alert her husband about her labor , court documents say . Afterwards , one of the deputies shackled her left foot and right hand to the hospital bed , something that the medical staff called a `` barbaric '' violation of medical standards , court records state . The shackles were removed before she delivered the baby . After she had delivered the baby , and against doctor 's orders , a third deputy shackled her to the bed again , according to the court documents . The sheriff 's department 's policies that led the deputies to shackle her throughout the ordeal were a violation of the U.S. and Tennessee constitutions , her lawyers argued . The sheriff 's office said its deputies followed established procedures and accepted practices . Early last year , Judge Haynes ruled in favor of Villegas , and after a three-day trial in August , the jury set the $ 200,000 award . Villegas had once been deported from San Diego and returned illegally to the United States , and had lived here for years , her lawyer said . At the time of her arrest , her eldest son was 14 , and he had been born in the United States . Villegas is married with five children . CNN 's Mariano Castillo contributed to this report .
A judge rules that Juana Villegas can seek a U-visa . The U.S. government has said it will appeal the ruling. The judge also awards $ 1.1 million in lawyers ' fees and other expenses .