Fabian Schmidt endured a harsh interrogation where he was pressured to give up his green card and treated poorly before collapsing.

Fabian Schmidt, a New Hampshire resident with a valid green card, was detained at the Logan Airport in Boston by immigration officers.

According to local Boston news GBH, Schmidt was returning from a trip to Luxembourg on Friday, 14 March when he was stopped by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

He was held for over four hours when his family learned his green card had been flagged. According to Schmidt's mother, Astrid Senior, Schmidt endured a harsh interrogation where he was stripped naked, forced into a cold shower by two officials, and pressured to give up his green card. He was deprived of sleep, had little access to food and water, and was denied his medication for anxiety and depression.

He eventually collapsed and was brought to the Massachusetts General Hospital where it was discovered he had influenza.

Later, he was transferred to ICE's regional headquarters in Burlington, Massachusetts, and he is now being held at the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in the state of Rhode Island by ICE.

Schmidt's family, including his partner and daughter who are both American citizens, was not given any reason for why he is being detained. They state that his green card was recently renewed, and he has no standing legal issues. Schmidt's partner is working with a lawyer as well as with the German consulate to find a way to release him.

Schmidt, an electrical engineer, moved to the United States in 2007 and obtained his green card in 2008. He has a minor legal history involving a dismissed marijuana possession charge from 2015 for less than 30 grams and a resolved DUI from over a decade ago.

Increased scrutiny towards immigrants

A green card is meant to grant foreign residents the ability to work and live in the United States, and it goes through the renewal process every ten years.

According to the Immigration and Nationality Act, the government starts the removal proceedings in immigration court, and the individual has the right to defend themselves and understand why they are potentially being deported. The Immigration and Nationality Act also stipulates crimes and behaviours that can make it easier for a green card holder to be deported.

Jaclyn Kelley-Widmer, an immigration law professor from Cornell Law School says denying a green card on such minor charges like Schmidt's would be considered an extreme case.

Gregory Chen, senior director of government relations for the American Immigration Lawyers Association states that there has been a trend from the federal government to target those with legal immigration status. This demonstrates an increased sense of scrutiny on immigrants in the United States, not only of undocumented immigrants, but legal ones too.

Read more: Survey reveals plummeting trust in US and support for increased defence spending in Luxembourg, 83% of USAID programs to be scrapped: Rubio