Temporary pause on deportation for Seamus Culleton, Irishman detained in US

Eva Osborne

Irishman Seamus Culleton will not be deported to Ireland on Tuesday, after a court in the United States issued a temporary order halting his removal.

This comes after it was expected that the Kilkenny man would arrive at Dublin Airport on Tuesday, reports the Irish Times.

Culleton, who has been held by ICE officials in the US, told the media last week that he had been held in a detention centre in Texas since last September, which he likened to a "concentration camp".

The Kilkenny man was arrested in Boston in September last year, even though he had been in the US for 20 years and is married to a US citizen.

Niall O'Dowd with The Irish Times said that, even before the Trump immigration crackdown, Culleton very likely would not have obtained his green card because he had overstayed his 90-day visa.

"What is happening in practice is that the 90-day overstay visa cases – which is the one most undocumented Irish entered under – are being decided against the immigrant," O'Dowd said.

"The draconian new laws seem to be part of the Trump administration’s policy to make conditions so arduous that inmates will pledge never to come back to the US.

"It is no surprise that the Texas judiciary, which is among the harshest in the USA, is handling much of the immigration issue."

O'Dowd said it seems there will be few limits on steps taken to stop immigrants getting their green cards, even those showing up for their last interview with final signing-off papers clutched in their hand.

He said he would like Taoiseach Micheal Martin to raise his case with US President Donald Trump during his meeting at the White House in March for St Patrick’s Day.

The US Department of Homeland Security said Mr Culleton arrived in the US in 2009 under a visa waiver programme, allowing people to stay in the US for 90 days without a visa, but did not leave after this period.

Culleton’s lawyer Ogor Winnie Okoye said the US government has historically given exemptions and forgiven certain immigration violations – such as working without authorisation or overstay – to immediate relatives of US citizens.

Okoye said he had submitted a green card application before his arrest and had been scheduled for his marriage-based green card interview in November.

On Monday, the legal firm of Okoye, BOS Legal, said a petition for review of the administrative final removal order and an ex parte motion filed in the First Circuit Court of Appeals on Friday delayed Mr Culleton’s deportation.

It said the “significant” development saw a temporary order “staying Culleton’s removal for the next 10 business days”.

“The court ordered the government to file their response which is due in the coming days,” it said.

“Culleton has resided in the United States for nearly two decades and is married to a US citizen.

“He has no criminal entries since living in the United States.

“Culleton is married to a US citizen, presents no public safety concerns, and has strong familial and community ties in the United States.

“Culleton has been separated from his wife, Tiffany, and his family for over five months.

“Our legal team remains focused on securing his release from Ice custody and obtaining the immigration relief necessary for him be reunited with his wife and to remain in the United States with his family.

“We are committed to advocating for Culleton’s right to remain in the United States based on legal merits of his case.

“Our focus is on reuniting him with his spouse and ensuring that justice is served within the bounds of our laws.”

Additional reporting by PA