Detained for 3 Weeks for Overstaying 11 Hours?

[Avery Cates 1,141]

So I happened to come across this article on Facebook and gave it a read.

Huffington Post has now apparently resorted to being another click-bait website, because after reading through it I've determined that the article is pretty much 100% wrong

Who wants to read through it with me and find all the inaccuracies and piece together what really, actually happened?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/04/15/immigration-detention_n_7074032.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000013

WASHINGTON -- Sarah Jane McCrohan, a 24-year-old Australian, says she stayed in the U.S. for about 11 hours longer than she was supposed to, and it's landed her in detention for three weeks.

Edited April 20, 2015 by Penguin_ie

[Jacque67 7,328]

So what really happened? No clues in the piece as far as I can see.

[Boiler 45,499]

Huffpo is not really a news site.

Her reason for going to Canada makes no sense. She overstayed her US visit and was refused entry into Canada, so bounced back to US, not eligible for VWP entry so detained pending deportation.

[Boiler 45,499]

She was deported

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

Also, why would she incur a ten year ban for an 11 hour overstay? There's a lot missing or misstated here.

[Boiler 45,499]

5 year ban for being deported I think.

[elmcitymaven 9,712]

5 year ban for being deported I think.

And the extra five?

[Pooky 3,784]

And the extra five?

For being a bloomin' Australian?

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

The point of going to the Australian embassy was for McCrohan to speak to someone there about legal avenues for her to return...

That makes no sense. There's an Australian Consulate right there in NY that she could have gone to. Why travel to Ottawa? If the Consulate ain't good enough and she needed to go to the embassy, the one in Washington would still be closer than the one in Ottawa. There's certainly more to the story than what is reported.

[Avery Cates 1,141]

That makes no sense. There's an Australian Consulate right there in NY that she could have gone to. Why travel to Ottawa? If the Consulate ain't good enough and she needed to go to the embassy, the one in Washington would still be closer than the one in Ottawa. There's certainly more to the story than what is reported.

DING DING DING we have a winner.

Having jumped down the rabbit hole of this story, she had been in the US since AT LEAST June 21st, 2014, leaving 275 days between then and her detention on March 23rd, 2015. Slightly more than the "11 hours" that she was claiming.

They tried to take their dirty hippy bus to Canada, and likely the Canadian border guards saw she was trying to enter from the US on an expired VWP and weren't confident she was going to follow their visitor/tourist rules so denied them entry and turned them around, and when they tried to cross back into the US was rightfully detained at that point and put into removal proceedings. Again, rightfully.

I wonder if they were trying to cross into Canada, and cross back and attempt to use VWP for another 90 days of authorized stay, not knowing that it was likely cancelled already, and that ground crossings to Canada and Mexico don't count as new periods of stay but rather count towards time allowed on the original VWP. That's pretty much #1 on the VWP's list of "Don't be an ####### by Trying This" list.

Edited April 19, 2015 by Avery Cates

[Merrytooth 5,748]

There are many seriously naive people who do not know the VWP rules.

The Aussie could be one of those.

[Transborderwife 4,666]

http://www.nhregister.com//opinion/20150110/randall-beach-meet-the-couple-who-have-a-magical-mystery-tour-on-the-horizon

I believe that this is the young lady...5 Year journey?

Edited April 19, 2015 by Transborderwife

[BaronB 42]

Does it take 11 hours to cross the border from the US to Canada? She didn't know she overstayed? Yeah right.

[Mr. Big Dog 10,747]

Does it take 11 hours to cross the border from the US to Canada? She didn't know she overstayed? Yeah right.

Yeah, all that's missing now is a gofundme page.

[BaronB 42]

Yeah, all that's missing now is a gofundme page.