Jean-Noël Barrot Says ICE Released 85-Year-Old French Widow Marie-Thérèse Ross After 16 Days

An 85-year-old French widow, Marie-Thérèse Ross, was released from U.S. federal immigration custody and returned to France after 16 days, according to the Associated Press.

“85-year-old widow is released from US custody, returns to France amid messy family dispute 85-year-old widow is released from US custody, returns to France amid messy family dispute PARIS (AP) — An 85-year-old French widow who moved to the U”

Associated Press

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot told reporters during a visit to the southern city of Montpellier that “She returned to France this morning. This is a satisfaction for us,” and he said U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement methods are “not in line” with French standards and “not acceptable to us.”

Associated Press

The case began when Ross entered the U.S. last June after marrying a retired U.S. soldier who had been stationed in her home country in the 1960s, court records show.

After her husband died of natural causes in January, a dispute arose over his estate, and an Alabama judge found that her stepson, a U.S. federal employee, allegedly intervened to have her taken into immigration custody.

Federal immigration agents detained Ross in Alabama on April 1 after she overstayed her 90-day visa, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

She was then held at a detention facility in Louisiana as French officials expressed concern about her well-being, the Associated Press reported.

The AP also reported that Ross was not given the medication she needed while being held in Louisiana, according to her attorney Kim Willingham, who said, “She does not feel she or other inmates are being treated well within the facility.”

The detention was tied to a messy estate dispute after Ross’ husband died in January, with court records describing how his sons sought control of his assets and how mail was rerouted.

The Associated Press reported that the sons sought to take control of his modest assets totaling less than $190,000 in value, including the home in Anniston, Alabama, where Marie-Thérèse Ross resided.

CiberCuba

It said the sons rerouted mail from the residence, leading their stepmother to miss an immigration-related appointment, and Calhoun County Probate Judge Shirley A. Millwood noted this in a court order earlier this month.

Millwood accused one son—a former Alabama State Trooper who now works as a federal employee—of using his position to prompt the detention of his stepmother days before a hearing over the estate.

In an April 10 ruling, Millwood ordered the stepsons to allow Ross to retrieve her clothes, phone, documents and other possessions from her late husband’s home.

The Associated Press also reported that Ross was taken into custody in her nightgown and unable to bring her phone, passport and other identification with her, and that the stepson denied involvement in her arrest in court.

The UPI report added that Probate Judge Shirley Millwood said in her ruling that Tony Ross, one of the sons and a retired Alabama state trooper, was informed by police that Marie was going to be arrested the day before it happened and again an hour before the arrest, while Tony Ross denied the accusation in his testimony to the court.

UPI further said Ross was detained in Alabama earlier this month for overstaying her 90-day visa and held in a detention center in Louisiana, before being released after 16 days.

After Ross returned to France, her son Hervé Goix said the family’s “absolute priority” was to protect her health and rest, speaking at a press conference in Orvault, France.

Goix told reporters that “To preserve her health and her rest, and for her to be able to rebuild herself,” and he said, “We are particularly relieved today to see our mother again, to have her back.”

He also said, “She has necessarily gone through a difficult ordeal,” and he described the immediate goal as safety and recovery.

Goix told the press that “the essential thing is that she is truly safe, that she regains her comfort, that she is surrounded by her children and grandchildren.”

The AP reported that Ross’ son Herve Goix said she had been in the process of applying for a green card when she was taken into custody, and he said, “She’s very tired, she’s not very good, but it’s difficult for her.”

In the same AP account, Ross’ attorney Kim Willingham said Ross was not given the medication she needed while being held in the Louisiana detention facility, and Willingham told the AP, “She does not feel she or other inmates are being treated well within the facility.”

A separate radio posting of the AP material quoted the mayor of Orvault, Sébastien Arrouët, saying “she is delighted, she is happy, she is relieved,” and Arrouët added, “We don’t realize the psychological violence. She needs to process all this, and the most important thing is that she is back with us.”

The AP also reported that Ross gave up her pension and moved to Alabama last year to marry William B. Ross, and that her stepson denied involvement in her arrest in court.

French officials framed the release as satisfaction while still pointing to concerns about how ICE handled the case.

Barrot told reporters that “She returned to France this morning. This is a satisfaction for us,” and he said ICE methods were “not in line” with French standards and “not acceptable to us,” according to the Associated Press.

Just The News

The PBS version of the AP reporting said Barrot “would not comment on the specific case, but said some of ICE methods are "not in line" with French standards and "not acceptable to us."”

PBS also reported that Barrot referred to “violence that raised our concerns,” without elaborating.

UPI similarly reported that Barrot said “there were acts of violence,” and it quoted him again saying, “The main thing is that she is back in France and that is fully satisfying to us.”

Just The News added that Barrot said the main thing was that she was back in France and that he added “there were acts of violence” that concerned the French government.

In the Associated Press account, Millwood urged the federal government to investigate the circumstances of Ross’ arrest “in light of the ongoing national events surrounding the distrust of federal law enforcement officers and the many investigations ongoing of corruption within our government.”

The Associated Press also said the city of Anniston stated its police department had “no involvement” in Ross’ arrest, and it reported that DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Even after Ross’ return, the sources show continuing legal and investigative threads tied to the estate dispute and to the circumstances of her arrest.

The Associated Press reported that Calhoun County Probate Judge Shirley A. Millwood ordered the stepsons to allow Ross to retrieve her clothes, phone, documents and other possessions from her late husband’s home in an April 10 ruling, and it said Millwood urged the federal government to investigate the circumstances of Ross’ arrest.

KSAT

The AP also said the office of attorney Megan Huizinga, representing the two stepsons in the estate dispute, declined to comment, while DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

People magazine reported that Barrot confirmed Ross’ release and said, “the main thing is that she is back in France, and that is fully satisfying to us,” while also noting that it was unclear whether she left the country under her own volition or had been deported.

People also reported that Ross was detained by ICE on April 1 after overstaying her visa that permitted her to stay in the U.S. for 90 days, and it said she was released on Thursday, April 16.

People further described that Calhoun County Probate Judge Shirley A. Millwood ruled that her late husband’s sons “purposefully” rerouted her mail, leading the octogenarian to miss an immigration hearing.

UPI added that Millwood was pushing for an investigation into whether Ross’ sons tampered with her mail, causing her to miss an immigration appointment.

In the AP account, Ross’ stepson denied involvement in her arrest in court and Millwood said evidence indicated he knew in advance and received a text message confirming it shortly afterward.