NZ mum 'locked in a cell' hopes 6-year-old son will be released by ICE soon
A friend of Sarah Shaw, a New Zealander detained at the US-Canada border, says they're expecting to hear today whether her six-year-old son will be released.
Shaw and her son Isaac, who live in Washington state, were detained three weeks ago after dropping her other children off in Vancouver to catch a flight.
Victoria Besancon said Shaw was "absolutely terrified" when she and her son were bundled into a giant white van with no markings on it at the Canadian border.
"I remember her on the phone being absolutely panicked. She originally thought she was being kidnapped, she didn't even realise she was being detained originally."
The conditions she was being held in were "very similar to a prison," Besancon said.
"She is in a locked room with five bunk beds, she's allowed to walk around the facility from 8am to 8pm, but outside of that she is locked in a cell with other families."
They were among the only English-speakers at the facility.
A graduate student working towards her masters degree and working for the state in corrections, Shaw had lived in America for the past three years.
Besancon explained that there were two parts to Shaw's visa, known as a "combo card" - first, an I-360 visa (the kind granting immigration status to a widow or, in Shaw's case, a victim of domestic violence), and second, an employment visa, which Shaw was granted when she was employed by the state.
Shaw was waiting on both parts of her visa to be renewed, but long wait times on I-360s meant this part was not renewed at the same time as her employment visa - but Shaw did not know that, Besancon said, assuming the visa card she received in the post meant she was fully approved.
Besancon said ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) officials at the border could have allowed Shaw to return anyway by filing for humanitarian parole, but due to increased detainment quotas and "the atmosphere in America right now", many people were being detained who normally would not have been.
Isaac, however, was being held illegally, she said, as he possessed all the right paperwork to re-enter the country.
They were expecting a decision today on whether ICE would release him into her care.
The Foreign Minister's office has confirmed to RNZ that New Zealand's embassy is working on the case, after only just finding out about it.
Winston Peters' office said it was through the media that staff heard about the case and nobody made contact beforehand.
Peters' office said the minister was aware of the detention and would let consular officials do their work. Detainment in another state making legal battle difficult
Despite Isaac's paperwork, he was still detained along with his mother, which meant they needed to be kept in a family detainment centre - of which there are only three, with the nearest option to Washington state in Texas.
"Instead of being detained in her state of record, which is Washington, where her legal attorney would have had a much easier time defending her and requesting information, they took her multiple states away," Besancon said.
If Isaac was released, it would hopefully mean Shaw could be transported to a facility in her own state.
Retaining legal counsel in both states was expensive, on top of Shaw not being able to work.
The GoFundMe page Besanon set up for her friend had topped US$37,000 - that is, nearly NZ$64,000 - by Tuesday evening, leaving her "speechless".
"I was hoping to just get her rent covered for a month, I had no idea that this was going to get so much support."
As well as donations, they had also been receiving stories from other families who had experienced similar situations.
"I know it's really high on Sarah's priority list that when she does get out, to try and find a way to advocate for this."
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