French widow returns home after ICE detention
An elderly French woman was freed after France stepped in.
Marie-Therese Ross-Mahe, an 86-year-old French widow, was released from US immigration detention and flown back to France on Friday after her case attracted diplomatic attention and media coverage.
She had been living in Alabama, where she once shared a home with her late husband, a retired US army captain. American officials said she had overstayed a 90-day visa, which led to her arrest by immigration agents.
French foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrot said Paris intervened, and soon after that Ross-Mahe was allowed to return home. Her family met her in Paris and said she looked exhausted and emotionally shaken by what had happened.
The case drew strong reactions because Ross-Mahe is elderly and had long personal ties to the United States. For many people, the story raised questions about how immigration enforcement is carried out in cases involving vulnerable older adults.