A judge has ordered that longtime Columbia resident Owen Ramsingh be deported to the Netherlands, with a lifetime ban on returning to the United States.
Ramsingh was held in a Texas detention center for more than a month after he was detained in Chicago upon his arrival back in the U.S. from a yearly trip to his home country of the Netherlands.
He has held a green card since he immigrated to the U.S. as a child. This February, Ramsingh renewed the card for 10 more years prior to his trip in September.
KBIA previously talked with immigration lawyer Bill Niffen about the likelihood of deportation. At the time, Niffen said the combination of two drug-related incidents on Ramsingh’s record were enough of a basis for the current administration to deport him, even though he had been convicted as a teenager.
“What I would imagine happened is at some point, databases got connected and somebody said, ‘Hey, what's this about?’ And then [Owen] leaves, comes back and, lo and behold, he's got this conviction," Niffen said.
The family may file a waiver in 8-10 years to remove the ban. In the meantime, Ramsingh’s wife, Diana, said in a Facebook post that the family plans to move to the Netherlands next year.
Samantha Gage, a longtime friend of the Ramsingh family, said the judge’s decision surprised both the family and the community.
A judge in Ramsingh’s initial trial in El Paso, Texas indicated he would suspend the deportation if more paperwork was provided. The judge would then have 10 days to review this paperwork before making his final verdict, according to Gage.
But within those 10 days, Ramsingh was transferred to a court in New Mexico, with a new court date to match. The newly assigned judge issued a final verdict that was different from the decision the judge in El Paso originally indicated.
“Pretty much as soon as the judge walked in, he had his decision made,” Gage said. “And so it was a total gut punch of we were very hopeful and optimistic, then just total shock.”
Since the deportation sentence, Gage said there has been an immense outpouring of support from the community. There’s been dozens of comments in the “Bring Owen Home” Facebook group, some of which offering help with the family’s upcoming move.
“It's been overwhelming support,” Gage said. “And if anything, that is what has kept Owen alive, and that is what kept him fighting. He time and time again wanted to surrender his green card, but he didn't just because of his dream of being back in this community.”
Ramsingh’s family hopes to know within the next 24 hours when he will be on a flight to the Netherlands.
