ORVAULT, France (AP) – Silence enveloped the Louisiana immigration detention facility where 85-year-old Marie-Thérèse Ross was held, followed by the heart-wrenching sounds of children crying. Ross, a French widow of a U.S. military veteran, was arrested last month as part of the Trump administration's immigration crackdown, an event that drew international attention. She recounted her distressing experience while speaking to The Associated Press about her 16 days in federal immigration custody after being apprehended on April 1 in Alabama due to an alleged visa overstay. Now released, Ross has returned to her home in France.
The ordeal in detention profoundly affected Ross and altered her perception of political issues. Inside the facility, she was housed in a dormitory-style room alongside 58 other women, most of whom were mothers grappling with the distress of not knowing the whereabouts of their children. Ross described one horrifying aspect of the experience: “Some of them didn’t know where their children were,” emphasizing the emotional toll such uncertainty inflicts on caregivers.
Her arrest in Alabama was abrupt and bewildering. When five men claiming to be immigration officers knocked on her door, she was wearing her bathrobe, slippers, and pajamas. Handcuffed and taken away, she spent two days at one facility before being transferred to another in Basile, Louisiana. After being released later that month, she began her recovery process in a suburb of Nantes, France, surrounded by family. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot publicly advocated for her release, condemning U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) methods as inconsistent with French values.
Marie-Thérèse Ross had moved to the U.S. to start a new life with her husband, William B. Ross, a retired U.S. soldier she met while he was stationed in France in the 1950s. After maintaining a long-distance connection for decades, their relationship blossomed into romance following the deaths of both of their spouses. They married last year, and she moved in with him in Anniston, Alabama. Following his death in January, a legal dispute over William's estate arose, leading to complications regarding her immigration status. The court noted issues caused by William's sons, one of whom was accused of using his position as a federal employee to facilitate her detention. Despite their protests, Marie-Thérèse insisted that their relationship soured after her husband's passing.
Upon her release, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security stated that Ross had overstayed her 90-day visa, asserting that ICE facilities undergo regular audits to ensure compliance with national standards. They emphasized that detainees receive proper meals, medical care, and opportunities for contact with family and lawyers, claiming their standards are higher than those of many U.S. prisons. However, Ross painted a different picture of her experience in Louisiana. She described the environment as noisy, with guards frequently yelling orders, contributing to an atmosphere of tension and fear.
Despite the distressing conditions, Ross found moments of connection among the detainees, many of whom were mothers from South America. She recalled a poignant moment when a small hand gently replaced her blanket during the night. Known affectionately as "Grandma" among her fellow detainees, she keeps a friendship bracelet, a token of solidarity from another detainee, which she continues to wear.
Ross’s ordeal left her grappling with emotional scars and memory issues, prompting her to seek medical support for symptoms resembling post-traumatic stress. She expressed a lingering empathy for the women she met, many of whom were separated from their children, and her perspective on U.S. immigration policies has significantly shifted. Having previously viewed America as a "country of freedom," her firsthand experience of the harsh treatment immigrants face in detention facilities contradicted her beliefs. She voiced that the only fault of many of those detained was their South American origin.
As she navigates her recovery in France, Ross passionately affirms her commitment to advocate for those she encountered while in detention. “When I left this jail in Louisiana, I told them that if I ever had the chance to speak about them, I would do it, to help them,” she stated, demonstrating her determination to give a voice to the struggles of immigrants.
