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A pregnant Ghanaian asylum seeker and her son will return to Ghana after spending 10 days detained at Dulles International Airport, following an emergency federal court hearing on May 29.
Judge Leonie M. Brinkema of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia ordered that Anabella Gyasi and her child be allowed to leave the airport immediately. Brinkema wrote that their welfare and the interests of justice would be best served by permitting them to return home.
Gyasi and her son arrived at Dulles on May 19 and planned to connect to a flight to Ohio. Her son, who was born with disabilities, had an appointment for a surgical consultation at Akron Children’s Hospital.
Gyasi had previously traveled to the United States for the same purpose two years earlier but was advised to wait until her son was older. She used tourist visas for both trips.
During her latest arrival, Gyasi indicated that she was interested in seeking asylum, a status available to people who fear persecution in their home countries. That disclosure led to her detention.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Virginia represented Gyasi in her effort to leave detention and pursue refugee protections. According to the organization, Gyasi and her son were held for more than a week in a windowless room with limited access to food and regular hygiene.
ACLU-VA Legal Director Eden Heilman argued that Gyasi was detained because she disclosed her asylum interest upon arrival. The organization maintained that the detention was unlawful.
ACLU-VA Executive Director Mary Bauer said Gyasi was among a growing number of pregnant people detained following President Donald Trump’s executive order seeking to end birthright citizenship. Bauer welcomed the family’s release while condemning the conditions they experienced and saying the organization would continue challenging detentions without due process.
Medical staff had documented Gyasi’s high blood pressure, a condition that can pose risks during pregnancy. An emergency petition filed by the ACLU on May 28 also said medical personnel were concerned that she had not received enough food.
Bauer said the stress of confinement threatened Gyasi’s health and the viability of her pregnancy. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson rejected the allegations as false.
The ACLU argued that airport detention areas are not designed to hold people safely for extended periods. Its petition said Customs and Border Protection had converted nonpublic commercial spaces into holding rooms furnished with little more than a toilet, sink and bed, without on-site medical services.
Although federal immigration policy generally discourages detaining or deporting pregnant people, the article reported that 498 pregnant people had been detained during the previous year and 363 had been deported.