B.C. mother and 7-year-old daughter detained by ICE in Texas have been released | Globalnews.ca
A former Penticton mother and her seven-year-old daughter have now been released from ICE detention in Texas, more than two weeks after they were detained.
On March 14, Tania Warner and her daughter Ayla were stopped at a Customs and Border Patrol checkpoint and taken to a processing facility for deportation.
They were both born in B.C. but have been living in Texas with Warner’s husband for the past five years.
In an update posted on X on Thursday, Amelia Boultbee, the Independent MLA who represents Penticton-Summerland, said that the mother and daughter were released at 1 p.m.
She said the duo’s bond hearing took place “significantly faster” as a result of the public pressure surrounding the case.
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“Thank you to everyone who spread awareness of this case, donated money, and sent your support and well wishes to the family,” Boultbee wrote.
“Your kindness and willingness to speak loudly against injustice and oppression made a difference.”
Warner described the conditions inside the ICE detention centre in Texas as being similar to “prison.”
Warner had applied for immigration four years ago, but was denied because her husband is a registered sex offender in the state of Texas due to an incident from when he was a teenager.
Warner said their lawyer found a way to self-sponsor and his name is not attached to any of his wife’s or stepdaughter’s documents.
Immigration lawyer and policy analyst Richard Kurland, who is based in Vancouver and not directly connected to the case, said that even if Canadians have their paperwork up to date, they are still in jeopardy in the U.S.
“For any reason, the American immigration system can question your documents,” he said.
“Until those questions are answered, you may find yourself in a detention centre.”
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