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3mo ago

Irish Green Card Holder Released After Judge Dismisses Deportation Case

Cliona Ward, detained over decades-old convictions expunged at the state level, is home after 17 days in ICE custody and a federal court ruling in her favor.

Image
(L): A photo from NBC News of Cliona Ward, a green card holder who has lived in the United States for more than four decades and was detained by U.S. Customs and Border Protection at San Francisco International Airport on April 21 upon her delivery of requested documents, her sister told Newsweek. (R): The Northwest Detention Center is shown, Wednesday, April 15, 2020, in Tacoma, Washington.
A Santa Cruz County resident was detained at SFO and sent to an ICE detention center in Washington state before being released after a weekslong legal battle to halt her deportation.
Howard Gee, owner of North Beach’s AB Fits, stands in the doorway of his shop on Grant Avenue.

Overview

  • Cliona Ward, a 54-year-old Irish citizen and U.S. green card holder, was detained on April 21 at San Francisco International Airport over expunged 2007–08 convictions.
  • Ward spent 17 days in an ICE detention facility in Tacoma, Washington, before her release on May 7 following a federal judge's dismissal of her deportation case.
  • The case drew significant public and political attention, with Congressman Jimmy Panetta and Ireland’s Taoiseach Micheál Martin advocating for her release.
  • Ward, a long-term U.S. resident, has lived in Santa Cruz for 30 years, working, paying taxes, and caring for her chronically ill U.S. citizen son, with no new offenses since her expunged convictions.
  • Her detention highlights the conflict between federal immigration enforcement and state-level expungements, as well as broader concerns about due process under expanded deportation policies.