When Psalm Behpoor was told he was getting his 90-day review at the ICE holding facility in Bakersfield, he thought his release was going to be a “slam dunk,” and he’d be able to return to his wife and 3-year-old child.

“I thought you know, slam dunk. If I’m going to go through the same process that I went through 22 years ago when I was released then I should be fine,” Behpoor told GV Wire. “In the last 22 years, I’ve graduated college, I have a career, I deal with people, I make people feel safe.”

Behpoor, a manager at Pismo’s Restaurant, was detained by Immigration Customs and Enforcement in June for a burglary he committed more than 20 years ago — a burglary since reduced to a nonviolent offense, clearing the way for him to get his citizenship.

In the months he’s spent in detention,

See Full Page