Irish woman legally living in US detained after visiting dad in Ireland
An Irish woman who has been living in the United States of America (USA) for three decades has been detained after she returned from a visit to Ireland to see her father who is unwell.
54-year-old Cliona Ward emigrated to the States when she was in her late teens and attended college at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC).
Ms Ward is a permanent legal resident with a valid green card. 54-year-old Cliona Ward emigrated to the States when she was in her late teens and attended college at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC). Pic: Getty Images
The mother-of-one travelled back to Ireland with her step mother in recent weeks to visit her father, who is at the end of his life and battling dementia.
On returning to the States, Ward was apprehended by customs due to a conviction that was expunged 20 years ago.
Sharing her story on Go Fund Me, the woman's sister Orla Holladay explained: 'She did everything she was supposed to do in order to make reparations for that criminal conviction, and has been gainfully employed, paying taxes, and building a family in Santa Cruz… An Irish woman who has been living in the United States of America for three decades has been detained after she returned from a visit to Ireland to see her father who is unwell. Pic: Go Fund Me
'She has a son who is chronically ill who depends on her for care-giving.'
Ms Ward was released from the airport but returned on Monday to show documentation to US Customs and Border Protection officials highlighting that her conviction had been struck out.
The meeting led to Ward being taken into custody, with her sister noting it was all part of a plan to do so.
'Cliona is a very private and gentle person, who wants nothing more than to return to her quiet life,' Orla wrote, 'Please help her family secure the funds to retain a lawyer who can help her through this nightmare, and return her to her family and community as soon as possible.' Ms Ward was released from the airport but returned on Monday to show documentation to US Customs and Border Protection officials highlighting that her conviction had been struck out. Pic: Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images
The Irish native is currently at an ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) detention centre in Seattle with a court date on May 7.
Sharing an update on Saturday, Orla revealed she had been in contact with her sister who is 'terrified [and] scared of getting lost in the system.'
Orla added that they had found a lawyer and were hopeful they would represent her sister.
Orla followed up that Cliona said that she 'has been really depressed but knowing people are keeping eyes on her lifted her again.'
'She shared that although she can't speak with the majority of the women in there because most don't speak English, they have been giving each other support and there are lots of tears and hugs between the women,' Orla added.
For more information and to donate to Cliona's cause go here.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Irish Examiner
an hour ago
- Irish Examiner
Military parade rolls through Washington as protesters across US decry Trump
A massive military parade to celebrate the US Army's 250th anniversary, requested by President Donald Trump to coincide with his birthday, rolled through Washington DC on Saturday. It came as opponents of the president's agenda rallied in hundreds of cities nationwide for 'No Kings' protests. Despite concerns about lightning and thunderstorms, the rain held to a slight drizzle during the march of soldiers and machinery. Demonstrators confront police during a demonstration against President Donald Trump policies (AP/Jose Luis Magana) Heavy cloud cover and low visibility seemed to contribute to less of an aircraft presence in the parade. As the parade was underway, police in Los Angeles fired tear gas and flash bangs to try to disperse demonstrators challenging immigration raids. Clouds of gas wafted toward a family-friendly demonstration that had been going on for hours outside City Hall. The procession, with more than 6,000 soldiers and 128 Army tanks, was one Mr Trump tried to make happen in his first term after seeing such an event in Paris in 2017, but the plans never came together until the parade was added to an event recognising the Army's 250th anniversary. 'Every other country celebrates their victories. It's about time America did too,' Mr Trump declared in brief remarks at the parade's end. The president praised the strength of the military's fighting forces and said US soldiers 'fight, fight, fight and they win, win, win' — putting a new twist on a line he regularly delivered during his 2024 campaign rallies after he survived an assassination attempt. A military parade commemorating the army's 250th anniversary and coinciding with President Donald Trump's 79th birthday (AP/Jacquelyn Martin) At times, Mr Trump stood and saluted as troops marched past the reviewing stand. Attendance appeared to fall far short of early predictions that as many as 200,000 people would attend the festival and parade. There were large gaps between viewers near the Washington Monument on a day when steamy weather and the threat of thunderstorms could have dampened turnout. Hours before the parade started, demonstrators turned out in streets and parks around the nation to voice opposition to the Republican president. They criticised Mr Trump for using the military to respond to people protesting his deportation efforts and for the muscular military show in the US capital. As armoured vehicles rolled down the street in front of the president, on the other side of the country the Marines he deployed to Los Angeles appeared at a demonstration for the first time, standing guard outside a federal building. President Donald Trump participates in a reenlistment ceremony for Army soldiers during a military parade (AP/Julia Demaree Nikhinson) Dozens of Marines stood shoulder to shoulder in full combat gear beside the National Guard, Homeland Security officers and other law enforcement. Hundreds of protesters facing them jeered in English and Spanish, telling the troops to go home. In Washington, hundreds protesting Mr Trump carried signs with messages that included 'Where's the due process?' and 'No to Trump's fascist military parade' as they marched toward the White House. A larger-than-life puppet of Mr Trump was wheeled through the crowd, a caricature of the president wearing a crown and sitting on a golden toilet. Other protesters waved Pride flags and hoisted signs, some with pointed messages such as 'I prefer crushed ICE,' referring to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency. Other messages included: 'The invasion was HERE Jan. 6th, NOT in LA' and 'Flip me off if you're a FASCIST.' 'No Kings' rallies unfolded in hundreds of cities, designed to counter what organisers said were Mr Trump's plans to feed his ego on his 79th birthday and Flag Day. People hold signs reading, 'NO KINGS,' during a protest taking place on the day of a military parade commemorating the Army's 250th anniversary (AP/Rod Lamkey Jr) Organisers said they picked the name to support democracy and speak out against what they call the authoritarian actions of the Trump administration. On the National Mall, a display of armoured vehicles, helicopters and military-grade equipment was set up to commemorate the Army's birthday. Vendors outside the army festival sold gear marking the military milestone. Others hawked Trump-themed merchandise. UFC chief executive Dana White, centre, smiles during the parade (Doug Mills/The New York Times via AP) Larry Stallard, a retired American Airlines pilot, said he travelled to Washington from Kansas City for the weekend 'to see the military and see Trump.' Mr Stallard, who voted for Mr Trump, said it was 'hard to believe' people were upset about the cost of the event when 'they blow that in 10 seconds on things that we don't even need'. The parade was added just two months ago to the long-planned celebration of the army's birthday and has drawn criticism for its price tag of up to 45 million dollars (£33 million) and the possibility that the lumbering tanks could tear up city streets. About six in 10 Americans said Saturday's parade was 'not a good use' of government money. The vast majority of people, 78%, said they neither approve nor disapprove of the parade overall, according to a poll from The Associated Press-NORC Centre for Public Affairs Research.
Irish Independent
2 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Obituary: Carmencita Hederman, former lord mayor of Dublin, city councillor, senator and environmental campaigner
She was born Carmencita Cruess-Callaghan on October 23, 1939, into a family in Blackrock, Co Dublin, headed by bacteriological chemist Dr George Cruess-Callaghan and his wife Ita. Carmencita later studied at Trinity College Dublin. Archbishop of Dublin John Charles McQuaid had banned members of his Catholic congregation from attending TCD, but gave Carmencita a dispensation to enrol as a student there. French and Italian were among the subjects she took and she went on to acquire a Master's degree in July 1969. Earlier, in St Patrick's Church, Blackrock, on June 26, 1962, she married William (Billy) Hederman, a respected doctor and surgeon from Croom, Co Limerick, who served as president of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI) in 1990-92. The couple bought a house on Leeson Street while on honeymoon. In April 1968, when a draft city development plan proposed rezoning the area into office blocks, a letter of opposition she wrote to The Irish Times galvanised her neighbours and a group called Upper Leeson Street Area Residents Association was formed, which successfully campaigned to keep the zone for residential-use only. On June 22, 1987, she was elected lord mayor of Dublin, succeeding Bertie Ahern. Hederman garnered support from a 'rainbow coalition' of Fine Gael, Labour, Workers' Party, Progressive Democrats and three Independents, including the late Tony Gregory, and won by a single vote over Fianna Fáil's Ned Brennan, who was tipped as the favourite. The first woman to hold the post in 30 years, during her 12 months in office she played a leading role in Dublin's millennium celebrations of 1988, marking the takeover of the city by the Irish from the Vikings. She was a strong opponent of what she called 'destructive dual carriageways' in the city centre and their effect on inner-city communities. In August 1989, she was elected as an Independent member of Seanad Éireann on the Dublin University Panel along with Shane Ross and David Norris. She found it a difficult place to make significant progress on issues and did not stand in the next general election. Hederman was very interested in running as an Independent candidate for president of Ireland in 1990. Securing a nomination requires the support of at least four local councils or 20 members of the Oireachtas. She discussed the matter at an early stage with then-Fine Gael leader Alan Dukes, who was prepared to consider nominating her if she joined the party and ran as a Fine Gael candidate. 'She would have liked to be a candidate, but she wasn't prepared to adopt the party label,' he said last week. The party later nominated Austin Currie and the successful candidate was Mary Robinson. More recently, in light of events in Gaza, she supported the successful campaign for TCD to divest from Israeli organisations and academic institutions and companies operating in Occupied Palestine and on the United Nations' blacklist. She was a mother of five children and grandmother of nine. Her daughter, Wendy, was elected to Dublin City Council as a Progressive Democrat candidate for the Pembroke area in 2004. She was involved in key local issues, but retired from politics in 2007. Predeceased by her husband Billy in 2016, Carmencita Hederman passed away peacefully at the Royal Hospital, Donnybrook, on May 31.
Irish Independent
2 hours ago
- Irish Independent
Irish Prison Service warns Department of Justice that prisons are overcrowded
The head of the Irish Prison Service (IPS) wrote to the department saying a garda decision to bring charges against individuals arriving in Ireland without valid passports was contributing to 'unsafe and unmanageable' levels of overcrowding in Irish jails. It is a criminal offence to arrive in this country without a valid travel document, punishable by up to 12 months in prison or a €3,000 fine. That penalty was introduced by the Immigration Act 2004, but it has only been rigorously enforced in recent times, following a crackdown once the numbers of people arriving here without documents began to rise. In a letter to a senior department official, released under the Freedom of Information Act, IPS director general Caron McCaffrey said that, in normal circumstances, low-risk offenders on short sentences were the first to be offered temporary release. She said this would normally include those in custody for immigration offences but the Department of Justice had made a deliberate policy decision to keep them in jail. Her letter stated: 'It will unfortunately necessitate the early release of more serious and high-risk offenders to make space in already overcrowded prisons, instead of offenders deemed to be low risk, from a reoffending and community safety perspective.' She said the IPS was heading into a 'catastrophic period' and numbers in custody were reaching new highs every day. The letter was sent in February 2024 but was withheld by the IPS under Freedom of Information laws until recent weeks. Ms McCaffrey also asked for urgent changes in the operation of temporary release and what type of criminals it could be applied to. She said that if changes were not made, there was the 'real potential to result in violent disorder within our prisons, threatening the safety and well-being of both our staff and those in our care.' She said they had exhausted all options around the temporary release of low-risk offenders and added that the department needed to look at temporary release for 'medium to high-risk sentenced offenders', which would have to apply to criminals including 'prolific' burglars and individuals convicted of assault on gardaí or peace officers. Ms McCaffrey called on the department to look at options for temporary release of sex offenders, especially those at low risk of offending. Under existing rules, sex offenders are ineligible for temporary release and no change has been made to this policy since the letter was sent. 'It is recognised that this is a difficult category due to the victim issues and the fact that people convicted of a sex offence pose a low risk of very serious harm, while other types of offenders pose a high risk of less serious harm,' she said. 'However, other categories being considered for temporary release as part of crisis measures pose a much greater risk to public safety.' She said this was particularly relevant for historic convictions and older sex offenders, some of whom were 'medically dependent' and actively engaging in rehabilitation. She also called for more flexibility around the use of open prisons for long-serving prisoners. Under existing rules, only those serving sentences of less than eight years could be transferred to an open centre such as Loughan House or Shelton Abbey, meaning spaces were not always being used in an optimal way. She called for a reduction in the number of people being remanded in custody, and said there was a particular need for a bail supervision scheme for female offenders, with the country's two women's prisons in Dublin and Limerick operating above capacity. She also asked that the department press ahead with its efforts to reopen the disused Curragh Prison in Co Kildare.
