HAVRE - A routine bike ride in Havre turned into federal detention for a UK citizen, despite having a pending marriage-based Green Card, highlighting what his attorney says is an increasingly aggressive approach by federal immigration authorities.
Justin Grzeb, who married U.S. citizen Carla Kinney in April, was riding his bicycle on a recent afternoon to do some holiday shopping when a U.S. Customs and Border Protection agent reportedly pulled in front of him and demanded he get into the vehicle.
Watch Carla Kinney describe what happened to her husband:
Kinney says she received a call shortly afterward from her husband, who told her he had been taken to the Havre CBP office and that she needed to bring his passport and paperwork.
“They told me even though all my paperwork was in order, everything had been done right, they would not release my husband," Kinney said. "They were going to arrest him, detain him and deport him. Based on what the Border Patrol agent was telling me, he’d been actively looking for my husband for a while. He had a lot of personal information about me and about my husband, which concerned me because the only way he could have had it to that extent is if he had pulled it off of our Green Card application. I cannot speak to the actual officer's actions, but from my perspective, it really feels like we got targeted for going through it the right way.”
The couple had retained an immigration attorney to guide them through the process back in April. They filed their marriage-based Green Card application in September after collecting the necessary documentation, and according to Kinney, Grzeb had completed his biometrics appointment and all that remained was his required immigration interview, which was due to be scheduled any day now.
Kinney emphasized that Grzeb has no criminal history and has been actively volunteering in the community, helping at local organizations, including food banks and seasonal events.
“He is actively building a life with me here and becoming a member of the community, and he was literally snatched off the streets,” she said.
Kinney says a Border Patrol agent told her that Grzeb had been “actively looked for” because of a prior visa overstay, but that overstay is typically forgiven once a marriage-based Green Card application is filed. The couple’s immigration attorney, Randall Caudle, says Grzeb is legally allowed to remain in the U.S. while the application is pending.
“The government’s position…since before I started practicing 30 years ago, has been that once you file a Green Card application, you are legally present in the U.S. while it is pending until it either gets approved or denied,” Caudle said.
Kinney was told her husband is being transported to the Northwest Detention Center in Tacoma, Wash., though she says she has been unable to track his location in the federal system. He is scheduled to appear before an immigration judge, who will determine whether he can return to Montana to continue the green card process or be deported back to the United Kingdom.
Caudle, the couple’s attorney, says this case underscores what he describes as an aggressive approach by federal immigration authorities, with similar instances happening across the country.
“There’s a lot of people that say immigrants need to go through the ‘correct process,’" Caudle said. "Well, Justin and Carla were going through the correct process. They were doing everything the way they're supposed to do it. And yet we still have CBP coming after people that are doing it the right way. It's kind of insane right now, just what we're seeing ICE and CBP do. They're feeling empowered. Unfortunately, we're seeing massive constitutional violations.”
Kinney says the experience has been devastating for her and her husband, stressing that they have tried to navigate the immigration system legally and transparently.
“I just want him released to come home to me and our family,” she said.
MTN News tried to contact U.S. Customs and Border Protection in Havre for comment, but has not received a response.
