![Tae Heung “Will” Kim, far right, was released on November 15 after spending four months in ICE custody following his July 21 arrest at San Francisco International Airport. [NAKASEC]](https://www.koreadailyus.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/0804-release-e1754324648724.jpg)
After more than four months in federal detention, Tae Heung “Will” Kim, a Korean American scientist and U.S. permanent resident, was finally released on November 15. His ordeal began on July 21 when he was detained at San Francisco International Airport upon returning from his brother’s wedding in South Korea. What should have been a joyful homecoming turned into a nightmare that raises profound questions about immigration enforcement under the current administration.
Kim’s case is particularly disturbing because of its apparent arbitrariness. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) provided no clear explanation for his detention. When pressed, Customs and Border Protection cited a 2011 charge for possessing a small amount of marijuana—a minor offense for which Kim had already completed his court-ordered community service over a decade ago. To detain a legal permanent resident for more than 100 days over such a trivial matter defies reason and proportionality.
The 40-year-old doctoral candidate at Texas A&M University was conducting advanced research on Lyme disease vaccines when his life was suddenly upended. He has lived in the United States since age five, building his life and career here for over 35 years. Yet none of this mattered when he was pulled aside for secondary screening and subsequently transferred between detention facilities in California, Arizona, and Texas, reportedly without adequate access to legal counsel or due process.
The resolution of Kim’s case only underscores the weakness of the government’s position. According to the National Korean American Service & Education Consortium (NAKASEC), which advocated tirelessly for Kim’s release, the Department of Homeland Security failed to submit proper documentation justifying his arrest and detention during immigration court proceedings. The case was dismissed, yet ICE still held Kim for an additional four days before releasing him. If the government truly had legitimate grounds for detention, why couldn’t it produce the necessary paperwork?
This case reveals a troubling pattern in current immigration enforcement: detention first, questions later—if at all. NAKASEC and other advocacy groups rightfully characterize Kim’s treatment as symptomatic of the Trump administration’s aggressive anti-immigration policies, which often appear to prioritize show-of-force tactics over legal procedure and human dignity. When a green card holder can be swept into detention without clear cause and held for months while authorities scramble to justify their actions retroactively, something is fundamentally wrong.
The community response to Kim’s detention was remarkable. His family reached out to NAKASEC’s immigrant enforcement hotline, triggering a coordinated campaign that generated over 140 phone calls, 2,000 petition signatures, and 120 emails to federal lawmakers and key agencies. Advocates held eight meetings with congressional offices. In August, Kim’s mother even had a handwritten letter delivered to South Korean President Lee Jae Myung during his U.S. visit. This grassroots mobilization ultimately helped secure Kim’s freedom, demonstrating that collective action can still challenge governmental overreach.
Yet we must ask ourselves: What about those without such support networks? How many others languish in detention without advocates, media attention, or congressional intervention? Kim’s ordeal should not be viewed as an isolated incident but as a warning about how easily lawful status can be stripped of meaning when enforcement agencies operate with minimal accountability.
The Fifth and Sixth Amendments guarantee due process and access to legal counsel. These constitutional protections should not evaporate at the border or in immigration proceedings. If a legal permanent resident who has lived in America since childhood can be detained indefinitely over a 13-year-old misdemeanor, then the promise of lawful immigration status rings hollow.
Kim is now home with his family, able to resume his doctoral research. But his four-month ordeal leaves scars—on him, on his loved ones, and on our nation’s claim to uphold the rule of law. Immigration enforcement must operate within legal boundaries and respect basic human rights. Anything less transforms justice into arbitrary power, turning the American dream into an American nightmare for those who dare to travel, even with valid documentation.
We must ensure that cases like Kim’s never happen again. That requires vigilance, accountability, and a renewed commitment to the principle that in America, no one, citizen or immigrant, should be detained without clear legal justification and proper due process.
By Mooyoung Lee [lee.mooyoung@koreadaily.com]
