Overview
- Donna Hughes-Brown, 59, was released after an immigration judge ordered her freedom, and she has returned to her home in Bowling Green, Missouri.
- The Department of Homeland Security did not pursue an appeal, according to Hughes-Brown’s account of the proceedings.
- She was detained on July 29 at Chicago O’Hare and held for roughly 143 days, spending most of her confinement at a Kentucky facility.
- Her legal team marshaled more than 30 character witnesses and a letter signed by 18 U.S. senators, with the judge ruling for release shortly after the first witness testified.
- Hughes-Brown voiced relief and concern for others still detained, credited family and the Irish consulate’s support, and said she will avoid foreign travel until she becomes a U.S. citizen.