A grandmother in Missouri who has lived in the United States for nearly 50 years is being held by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and faces deportation to Ireland, according to local reports.
Donna Brown, an Irish citizen and legal permanent resident, was arrested in July at Chicago customs after returning from a family funeral in Ireland. She has spent more than 30 days in a Kentucky county jail.
The arrest stems from a bad check Donna wrote ten years ago for $25. Although she repaid the amount and served probation, U.S. authorities now classify the incident as a “crime of moral turpitude,” a term used in immigration law to describe conduct considered inherently base or depraved.
Her husband, Jim Brown, a 20-year U.S. military veteran, criticized the detention, saying, “You don’t arrest 58-year-old grandmothers. It’s just wrong. She hasn’t committed crimes.” He added that he is now caring for their horses alone on their farm near Troy, Missouri, while trying to secure his wife’s release.
The couple has five children and five grandchildren. Jim Brown said he believes her marriage should protect her from deportation and described the situation as a result of aggressive immigration policies under the Trump administration.
Attempts to reach federal representatives, including Missouri senators and ICE, have not yielded responses. Meanwhile, a GoFundMe campaign has been set up to support Donna and assist others in similar immigration legal battles.
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