Supporters gear up for upcoming Ramsingh immigration hearing
Matthew Sanders
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
Supporters of Columbia resident Owen Ramsingh, a citizen of the Netherlands who is being held in an El Paso, Texas, immigration detention center, rallied Friday night ahead of his detention hearing next week.
Ramsingh was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement at Chicago O’Hare Airport in September as he returned from a visit to his native country. He is a legal permanent resident of the United States, where he has lived since childhood, but the federal government has cited past drug possession charges for detaining him.
“A green card is a privilege, not a right, and under our nation’s laws, our government has the authority to revoke a green card if our laws are broken and abused,” the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement about the case.
People rallied for Ramsingh’s cause at the Columbia Elks lodge Friday night ahead of his Nov. 6 hearing. It’s one of nine fundraisers family and friends have held to help Ramsingh’s family and pay legal bills.
“I’m pretty sure the judge is going to grant him release, and it’s just, I hope ICE doesn’t hold him for a full 30 days,” said Robert Olsen, Ramsingh’s best friend and the man who went with him on his latest trip. “You know, we can get him back before Thanksgiving.”