nripulse A longtime green-card holder, teacher and grandmother was detained by ICE during a scheduled check-in — nearly three months after an immigration judge dismissed the removal case against her, according to her attorney. Venkata Vasamsetty, a Cary, North Carolina resident and lawful permanent resident since 2013, was taken into custody Aug. 11 after reporting to an ICE office in Charlotte with her daughter. Vasamsetty’s immigration troubles began after she traveled to India in July 2022 to visit her seriously ill father. She contracted COVID-19 while there, delaying her return. After she had spent a little over seven months outside the U.S., DHS alleged she had abandoned her permanent residency and placed her in removal proceedings. Vasamsetty contested the allegation, submitting evidence that she had maintained her home, family, employment and other ties in the United States. On May 19, 2026, an immigration judge dismissed the removal case, according to her attorney. Despite the dismissal, Vasamsetty attended a previously scheduled ICE check-in July 11 with a copy of the judge’s order. Her attorney says ICE officials told her their records had not been updated and instructed her to return the following month. When she returned Aug. 11, she was detained. At around 5 p.m., her family and attorneys were informed that she was being transferred to the Irwin County Detention Center in Ocilla, Georgia, according to her attorney. The attorney also alleges that Vasamsetty was “encouraged” to “self-deport.” On Aug. 12, her lawyers filed an emergency habeas corpus petition in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia. The petition asks a federal judge to require the government to establish its legal authority for detaining Vasamsetty and seeks her release. Her attorney has characterized the detention as unlawful. #Immigration #ICE #GreenCard #GreenCardHolder #ImmigrationNews #IndianAmerican #IndianAmericans #USImmigration #ImmigrationLaw #NRI #NRIPulse View all 21 comments