The husband of an Irish green card holder now stuck in immigration detention is publicly condemning President Donald Trump’s immigration push — even though he supported Trump when he last voted.
“It’s crazy that this is happening. It’s just crazy that this is even allowed in this country. That’s the problem. It shouldn’t even be thought that this should be OK,” Jim Brown said in an interview with Fox affiliate KMOV, reacting to what his family is dealing with. Brown’s wife, Donna Hughes-Brown, who is originally from Ireland, moved to the United States at age 11. The couple has been married for eight years, he said.
KMOV reported that U.S. Customs and Border Protection took Hughes-Brown into custody in July after she landed in Chicago from Ireland, where she had traveled to attend a family funeral. Now 58, she has been held for more than a month and is currently in deportation proceedings.
Under federal law, lawful permanent residents can lose their green cards and be deported if they have committed certain offenses, including crimes involving “moral turpitude,” a term courts commonly describe as “refers generally to conduct that shocks the public conscience as being inherently base, vile, or depraved.”
KMOV reviewed court records showing Hughes-Brown had written a $25 bad check almost ten years ago, later repaid the amount and completed probation. Even so, Brown said the government is arguing that her case qualifies as moral turpitude.
“I think it’s nonsense. I think it’s a blanket thing to catch everybody, to fill beds,” Brown told the station, voicing frustration over the explanation they were given. A DHS spokesperson told HuffPost, “A green card is a privilege, not a right, and under our nation’s laws, our government has the authority to revoke a green card if our laws are broken and abused.”
“Lawful Permanent Residents presenting at a U.S. port of entry with certain criminal convictions may be found inadmissible, placed in removal proceedings, and subject to mandatory detention,” the spokesperson added.
A GoFundMe set up to help cover Hughes-Brown’s legal costs described the couple as “very strong supporters and helpers” in their Missouri community, frequently involved in volunteer groups and outreach efforts.
“They are good servers of God; humble people who are always willing to help, and kind friends that share knowledge and wisdom with anyone in need,” a message on the fundraising page said. Brown told The Irish Times he has been able to speak with his wife while she has been detained, but said Hughes-Brown was recently moved into an isolation cell.
“[They] tried to feed her hot dogs and chilli mac … She probably told them after the fifth time they tried to serve her: ‘I’m not eating that,’” Brown said. “So they locked her up. I haven’t heard from her in three days now. It’s stupid.”
Brown said he has reached out to his Republican representatives — Eric Schmitt and Josh Hawley — along with ICE and the White House, but has not received any response. Missouri’s Republican governor, Mike Kehoe, sent Brown a note saying the matter was a “federal issue.” “I want somebody to have the guts and the fortitude to stand up and say, ‘You know what? This is wrong,’” Brown insisted.
He told Newsweek at the end of last month that he now “100 percent” regrets voting for Trump. “Trump advertised that he was getting criminal illegal immigrants and deporting them, which I don’t disagree with. But that’s not what he’s doing,” Brown said.
