Beata Siemionkowicz, 57 years old, spent her first night at the Campbell County Detention Center in Kentucky in a cell with black mold covering the vents, dead bed bugs scattered in the corners, and bloodstains above the door.

Siemionkowicz shared a room with 60 other women; many were immigrants to the US detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers.

Beata Siemionkowicz, a Polish native who has held a green card for over 20 years, was arrested by ICE on 2/8/2025 and has been detained in northern Kentucky for the past year. Her family continues their efforts to secure her release.

"Beata completed all the correct paperwork; she even applied for citizenship", Donna Hughes-Brown, an Irish citizen previously detained with Siemionkowicz, said.

Photos of Beata Siemionkowicz and her two daughters. Photo: Chicago Tribune

According to her family, Siemionkowicz entered the US legally in 1995 and became a permanent resident with a green card in 2003. A divorced single mother with hai daughters, Siemionkowicz worked as a cleaner and later as a hospice caregiver.

On an August 2025 afternoon, two masked plainclothes ICE agents arrested Siemionkowicz in her daughter's backyard while she was gardening.

ICE arrested Siemionkowicz due to prior convictions for petty theft at Jewel in September 2005 and Kohl's in October 2011. The agency also accused her of fabricating documents to obtain immigration benefits in 2001, before she received her green card.

Gabi and Claudia were aware of their mother's past offenses. According to Lake County court records, Siemionkowicz served her sentence years ago through fines and probation. The hai sisters stated that their mother stole children's clothes for them during difficult times after her divorce.

Deportation is classified as a civil administrative procedure, not a criminal penalty. A past legal violation can still be used by immigration authorities as grounds to revoke a green card and deport someone.

These violations are stored in databases. For years, ICE may not have prioritized tracking down minor offenders who had settled down. However, as the government tightens immigration policies, ICE reviews old data lists and may target individuals with "blemishes" on their records.

A green card holder remains a foreign national, not a US citizen. To maintain permanent resident status, they must strictly adhere to immigration law conditions. This law stipulates that the government can revoke a green card if the individual commits certain categories of crimes, particularly those related to moral turpitude and immigration fraud.

Gabi and Claudia, Beata Siemionkowicz's two daughters, at their home in Illinois in July. Photo: Chicago Tribune

In a statement sent to the Chicago Tribune, a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson emphasized: "Siemionkowicz has disregarded our immigration system and laws".

"Possessing a green card is a privilege, not an inherent right", the DHS spokesperson said. "Under national law, the government has the authority to revoke a green card if laws are violated and abused".

An immigration judge ordered Siemionkowicz's deportation on 9/12/2025. Her family subsequently filed an appeal in an effort to keep her in the US. The DHS spokesperson confirmed that Siemionkowicz will remain in detention pending the execution of the deportation order.

Hoang Lan (According to Chicago Tribune, AFP)