Father of New Zealand woman held in US by Ice along with six-year-old son voices hope for release
US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) detained Sarah Shaw and her youngest son after they attempted to re-enter the US from Canada on 24 July.
Shaw had just dropped her two eldest children at Vancouver airport, so they could take a direct flight back to New Zealand for a holiday with their grandparents, when her father, Rod Price, received a panicked phone call.
'She went to go back across into the US and then I got a frantic call to say that she's being detained and 'they're about to take my phone off me' and 'they're locking me up for the night',' Price told local broadcaster RNZ.
On Thursday, her friend Victoria Besancon told the Guardian that Shaw had received documents indicating she would be released, but the immigration centre was yet to verify the details to Shaw's lawyer.
Price was feeling confident and said there was a '90% chance' Shaw would be released on Friday afternoon, New Zealand time.
Ice confiscated Shaw's phone and transported her and her son to a Dilley immigration processing centre in south Texas, many states away from her home in Washington state, Besancon said on Wednesday.
The ordeal had been 'horrible', Besancon said. 'It really is kind of like being in jail ... it has been absolutely devastating and it's kind of barbaric.'
Shaw has what is known as a 'combo card'– a temporary immigration document that includes employment authorisation, which she obtained through her employment at a maximum-security juvenile facility, and an I-360 approval, which can grant immigration status to domestic violence survivors.
Shaw, who has lived in Washington for more than three years, had recently received a letter confirming her 'combo card' renewal, not realising that the I-360 element of her visa was still pending approval.
Shaw's lawyer, Minda Thorward, told local media in Seattle that it was a simple administrative error and border patrol had the discretion to parole her into the US. Her children, meanwhile, had the correct travel documents to enter the US.
'There was absolutely no reason for [her son] to be detained. It's unconscionable,' Thorward said.
New Zealand's foreign affairs ministry said it was in contact with Shaw but could not comment further on the case due to privacy issues.
The Guardian has contacted Ice and the US embassy in New Zealand for comment.
Shaw's case is the latest in a growing list of foreigners facing interrogation, detainment and deportations at the US border, including a British tourist, three Germans Lucas Sielaff, Fabian Schmidt and Jessica Brösche, and a Canadian and an Australian who were each held and then deported, despite having valid work visas.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BreakingNews.ie
2 hours ago
- BreakingNews.ie
State sends National Guard members to Washington at Trump team's request
West Virginia is sending 300 to 400 members of its National Guard to the US capital to assist in the Trump administration's takeover of the city's police department. The move by a nearby state comes as hundreds of District of Columbia National Guard were activated this week to back up local law enforcement in what the Republican administration calls an effort to crack down on crime and homelessness in the District of Columbia. Advertisement Governor Patrick Morrisey said in a post on Saturday on X that he was deploying '300-400 skilled personnel' from the West Virginia National Guard to support Mr Trump's 'initiative to make DC safe and beautiful'. Mr Morrissey said the step reflects 'our commitment to a strong and secure America'.
The Guardian
9 hours ago
- The Guardian
New Zealand woman and six-year-old son released from US detention
A New Zealand woman who was held for more than three weeks at a US immigration centre with her six-year-old son after they were detained crossing the Canada-US border has been released. In a short update on Saturday, the woman's friend Victoria Besancon said Sarah Shaw and her son were now safely home. The family would be taking some time to settle in before speaking about their experience. Shaw, 33, who has lived in Washington state for just over three years, and her son were detained when she attempted to re-enter the US after dropping her two eldest children to Vancouver airport on 24 July, so they could take a direct flight back to New Zealand for a holiday with their grandparents. 'She went to go back across into the US and then I got a frantic call to say that she's being detained and 'they're about to take my phone off me' and 'they're locking me up for the night',' Shaw's father, Rod Price told local broadcaster RNZ. It was a 'terrifying' ordeal, said Besancon, who had helped to raise money for Shaw's legal fight. 'Sarah thought she was being kidnapped,' Besancon told the Guardian this week. 'They didn't really explain anything to her at first, they just kind of quietly took her and her son and immediately put them in like an unmarked white van.' Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) confiscated Shaw's phone and transported the mother and son to the Dilley immigration processing centre in south Texas, many states away from her home, Besancon said. Foreign nationals caught up in the Trump administration's immigration crackdown have similarly been transported to centres far from their homes, support networks and legal representation. An Ice spokesperson said: 'The Dilley detention center is retrofitted for families. Adults with children are housed in facilities that provide for their safety, security and medical needs.' They added that 'parents, who are here illegally, can take control of their departure' by self-deporting through a government-issued app. Shaw is on a 'combo card' visa – an employment visa, which she obtained through her employment at a maximum security juvenile facility, and an I-360 visa, which can grant immigration status to domestic violence survivors. Shaw had recently received a letter confirming her visa renewal, not realising that the I-360 element of her visa was still pending approval. 'It wasn't until she tried to come back across the border that she realised only half of the combination card – because it's only one physical card – had been fully approved,' said Besancon. 'It has been absolutely horrible,' Besancon said, adding that aside from the staff, Shaw and her son were the only English speakers. She said they were locked in their shared bedroom from 8pm to 8am and not allowed to wear their own clothes. Besancon described the experience as 'absolutely devastating' and 'barbaric.' A spokesperson for US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) said: 'When someone with an expired parole leaves the country and tries to re-enter the US, they will be stopped in compliance with our laws and regulations. If they are accompanied by a minor, CBP will follow all protocols to keep families together or arrange care with a legal guardian. Immigration law will be enforced, and our officers and agents will act accordingly.' Shaw's case is the latest in a growing list of foreigners facing interrogation, detainment and deportations at the US border, including a British tourist, three Germans Lucas Sielaff, Fabian Schmidt and Jessica Brösche, and a Canadian and an Australian who were each held and then deported, despite having valid work visas. The union representing Shaw, the Washington Federation of State Employees (WFSE), had called for her release. 'The trauma this has already caused for her and her son may never be healed,' said Mike Yestramski, the union's president and a psychiatric social worker at Western State hospital.
BreakingNews.ie
13 hours ago
- BreakingNews.ie
U-turn as Trump administration agrees to keep Washington police chief in place
The Trump administration has reversed course and agreed to leave the Washington DC police chief in control of the department. Meanwhile, attorney general Pam Bondi, in a new memo, directed the district's police to co-operate with federal immigration enforcement regardless of any city law. Advertisement The order came after officials in the nation's capital sued on Friday to block President Donald Trump's takeover of the capital's police. Donald Trump (Jae C Hong/AP) The night before, his administration had escalated its intervention into the city's law enforcement by naming a federal official as the new emergency head of the department, essentially placing the police force under full control of the federal government. The attorney general's new order represents a partial retreat for the Trump administration in the face of intense scepticism from a judge over the legality of Ms Bondi's earlier directive, but she also signalled the administration would continue to pressure DC leaders to help federal authorities aggressively pursue immigrants in the country illegally, despite city laws that limit co-operation between police and immigration authorities. In a social media post on Friday evening, Ms Bondi criticised DC attorney general Brian Schwalb, saying he 'continues to oppose our efforts to improve public safety', but she added: 'We remain committed to working closely with Mayor Bowser.' Advertisement Mayor Muriel Bowser's office said late on Friday that it was still evaluating how it can comply with the new Bondi order on immigration enforcement operations. The police department had already eased some restrictions on co-operating with federal officials facilitating Mr Trump's mass deportation campaign but reaffirmed that it would follow the district's sanctuary city laws. In a letter sent on Friday night to DC citizens, Ms Bowser wrote: 'It has been an unsettling and unprecedented week in our city. Over the course of a week, the surge in federal law enforcement across DC has created waves of anxiety.' Attorney general Pam Bondi (Mark Schiefelbein/AP) She added that 'our limited self-government has never faced the type of test we are facing right now', but added that if Washingtonians stick together, 'we will show the entire nation what it looks like to fight for American democracy – even when we don't have full access to it'. The legal battle was the latest evidence of the escalating tensions in a mostly Democratic city that now has its police department largely under the control of the Republican president's administration. Mr Trump's takeover is historic, yet it had played out with a slow ramp-up in federal law enforcement officials and National Guard troops to start the week. Advertisement As the weekend approached, signs across the city — from the streets to the legal system — suggested a deepening crisis over who controls the city's immigration and policing policies, the district's right to govern itself and daily life for the millions of people who live and work in the metro area. The two sides sparred in court for hours Friday before US District Judge Ana Reyes, who is overseeing the district's lawsuit. She indicated the law is not likely to grant the Trump administration power to fully take over city police, but it probably gives the president more power than the city might like. 'The way I read the statute, the president can ask, the mayor must provide, but the president can't control,' said Judge Reyes, who was nominated to the bench by Joe Biden. The judge pushed the two sides to make a compromise. A lawyer for the Trump administration, Yaakov Roth, said the move to sideline Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith came after an immigration order that still held back some aid to federal authorities. He argued that the president has broad authority to determine what kind of help police in Washington must provide. Advertisement Metropolitan Police Department Chief Pamela Smith (Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP) The police takeover is the latest move by Trump to test the limits of his legal authorities to carry out his agenda, relying on obscure statutes and a supposed state of emergency to bolster his tough-on-crime message and his plans to speed up the mass deportation of people in the United States illegally. It also marks one of the most sweeping assertions of federal authority over a local government in modern times. While Washington has grappled with spikes in violence and visible homelessness, the city's homicide rate ranks below those of several other major US cities, and the capital is not in the throes of the public safety collapse the Trump administration has portrayed. The president has more power over the nation's capital than other cities, but DC has elected its own mayor and city council since the Home Rule Act was signed in 1973. Mr Trump is the first president to exert control over the city's police force since it was passed. The law limits that control to 30 days without congressional approval, though Mr Trump has suggested he would seek to extend it. Advertisement Ms Bondi's Thursday night directive to place the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration, Terry Cole, in charge of the police department came after Ms Smith had told officers to share information with immigration agencies regarding people not in custody, such as someone involved in a traffic stop. The Justice Department said Ms Bondi disagreed with the police chief's instructions because they allowed for continued practice of 'sanctuary policies', which generally limit co-operation by local law enforcement with federal immigration officers.
