‘Full-tilt assault on legal immigration’: Lawyers urge caution at U.S. border

Immigration lawyers say the case of a Vancouver woman detained in the United States over a denied visa is a warning to other Canadians that it's no longer business as usual when crossing the border for work.

Immigration lawyers say the case of a Vancouver woman detained in the United States over a denied visa is a warning to other Canadians that it’s no longer business as usual when crossing the border for work.

Jasmine Mooney returned to Vancouver this weekend after she was detained for about 12 days when she tried to cross the border near San Diego, Calif.

U.S. immigration lawyer Jim Hacking says Mooney’s case joins a growing list of stories over the past 10 days where people “with varying degrees of immigration status” — even one with a permanent-resident card — were either detained or deported in ways not seen before.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement say Mooney was held in accordance with a January executive order by President Donald Trump, and Hacking says the result is a “full-tilt assault on legal immigration.”

Vancouver-based immigration lawyer Richard Kurland says there will likely be “more of the same” over the summer, and Canadians should know that American immigration officers’ duties are to frustrate, instead of facilitate, entry.

Mooney’s family says the businesswoman and former actress endured days of “inhumane” conditions, ending up in a privately run detention centre in Arizona, with 30 people held in a single cell and very limited amenities.

She was detained at the US-Mexico border on March 3 and returned to Vancouver around midnight Saturday.

Hacking says the type of visa Mooney was applying for, a so-called TN, is unique because it is one of the few that can be issued at the border instead of requiring a visit to an embassy or consulate.