Outcry After Big ICE Bust Gets NJ Disabled Army Vet's Husband

One recent day, Dane Foster was doing what many Americans do every day: He had just dropped his daughter at daycare near his New Jersey home, and he expected to spend the rest of the day helping his wife and children.

He was also doing something that his wife can't do because of her disability. Foster, 36, of Westhampton has been a legal resident with a green card since 1997, a father of four who is married to a disabled U.S. Army veteran.

All that didn't matter. He was among 105 arrested this past month as the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement conducted a series of raids in 16 NJ counties. He was arrested in a traffic stop.

Read more: 105 Busted In 16 NJ Counties As ICE Ramps Up: Find Out Where

"We just want him home," his wife, Alexsa, an Army vet who fractured her pelvis and has migraines and seizures that have kept her from working, told Patch.

Alexsa has gotten help from a number of immigration advocates who posted a video of her (see below) pleading for the public's help since Dane was detained at the Essex County Correctional Facility in Newark. Faith in New Jersey and other groups have held protests over the past week.

A GoFundMe page also was set up to help pay for the family's legal expenses.

The biggest problem that Dane faces is that he was charged with marijuana possession at least twice since 2000, his family said. But Alexsa said that shouldn't matter, either.

"He has never had jail time or even probation and paid all his court fines in full," she told Patch.

In a statement, Emilio Dabul, a spokesman for ICE, said the agency "conducts targeted immigration enforcement actions in compliance with federal law."

"Dane Foster, a Jamaican national, is subject to removal from the US based on his criminal history," according to the statement. "He has been entered into immigration proceedings with the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR).”

Supporters of the Foster family say they will continue to take up their cause. Faith in New Jersey released a statement saying they are standing against ICE and "their unjust and inhumane detention and deportation machine."

“Dane is a good husband, an amazing father, hardworking business owner and leader in his congregation. He should be with his family not in a detention center that generates profits each time a man, woman and child is incarcerated. These systems are evil and how ICE is destroying and separating families is inhumane,” said Archange Antoine, executive director of Faith in New Jersey.

Afia Yunus, an attorney from the from Yunus Law Firm, said ICE can exercise discretion in enforcing the immigration laws against non-violent offenders. Dane, Yunus said, specifically has been charged with removability based on three prior simple possession of marijuana convictions that "ICE is claiming make him removable."

"The prior administration did this by prioritizing violent offenders and other immigration violators and the current administration could easily do the same," Yunus said. "Instead the current administration has chosen a policy of deportation and family separation. We as a nation need to stand up and say that deportation is not the solution. Separating families is not the solution."

Alexsa Foster, meanwhile, said she will continue to plead for Dane's freedom even as her life has gotten "crazy."

Alexsa said the holiday season has made it even tougher, noting that she has four kids who are ages 9 through 2. Dane is the sole provider in her family, she said.

"This has completely put a strain on the family emotionally along with financially," she wrote on GoFundMe page.

Alexsa said she's had to deal with lawyers fees, bonds and pending bills.

"My husband is an amazing father. He is so passionate with his kids, and our kids are left here not understanding why there dad isn’t here," she said. "And I can’t give them a answer that makes sense."

Here is her video:

Photo courtesy of Alexsa Foster