Researcher Detained: Immigration Policy Under Scrutiny

Tae Heung "Will" Kim, a researcher and legal permanent resident, faced unexpected detention at San Francisco International Airport for more than a week. The Texas A&M University scholar, detained by immigration authorities, subsisted on airport-sold food while being shuffled between rooms, his family and attorneys reported.

Details surrounding Kim's July 21 detention remain murky, although attorney Karl Krooth disclosed that Kim is now in the process of being deported. Customs and Border Protection maintains that green card holders with drug offenses violate their legal status. Despite fulfilling a community service requirement for a 2011 marijuana charge in Texas, Kim's future in the United States is uncertain.

Kim's case underscores heightened immigration enforcement under President Donald Trump, raising questions about executive power. Despite spending most of his life in the U.S., Kim, involved in Lyme disease vaccine research, now faces deportation. Concerns mount about his rights and well-being in detention, as family highlights medical needs and legal complexities.

(With inputs from agencies.)