3 weeks ago
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FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - The manager of a fashionable northwest Fresno restaurant was detained by ICE connected June 23.
Sam "Psalm" Behpoor has worked astatine Pismo's Coastal Grill for 10 years.
His wife, Lera, says she was shocked erstwhile she recovered out.
"I conscionable started crying," she explained tearfully. "I cried, screamed."
She says it's particularly hard for their three-year-old son.
"It's precise hard that he's not astatine the location due to the fact that I request my hubby and [my son] needs his dad," she said.
This each started aft Psalm received a telephone for an interrogation astatine the migration bureau successful Downtown Fresno.
When helium got there, Psalm says helium was separated from his lawyer and was told:
"'Don't instrumentality it personal. The past fewer weeks, we're focusing connected a antithetic premix of radical of Asian descent. And present we're moving towards the Middle East,' and I thought, 'What is this feline saying? Like this isn’t adjacent close what he’s saying, it’s not adjacent human.'”
Psalm came to the U.S. from Iran and received a greenish paper erstwhile helium was 13.
A fewer years later, helium served clip for non-aggravated burglary and took a plea deal.
"There were migration consequences that I was unaware of," helium explained. "I didn’t cognize this, but the imperishable residency is imperishable unless... and that unless falls into you perpetrate a felony.”
In September of 2024, Psalm started the months-long process to reinstate his greenish card.
He says helium finished submitting his documents successful May of 2025.
"You’re taking maine distant from my family, from my lad and my wife," helium said. "It's hard to speech astir due to the fact that I don't cognize what I'm feeling. It's a substance of pain, sadness, anger, doubt, lies. There's conscionable truthful galore emotions that spell done my head."
Associate Attorney astatine Cook & Olsen George Rios says lawsuit instrumentality changes each the time, but California's existent stance connected Psalm's transgression is clear:
"The California statute for burglary is not considered a transgression of unit oregon an aggravated felony oregon a transgression involving motivation turpitude. So therefore, it's not needfully a transgression that makes you deportable, meaning that having that connected your grounds does not marque you taxable to being placed successful beforehand of an migration judge. Now that whitethorn not person ever been the lawsuit implicit the years," helium explained.
Rios besides says Psalm could person been referred to an migrant justice astatine immoderate point, but helium whitethorn not person received the notice. That would person prompted officials to order his removal.
Ultimately, helium says the variability is what makes migration cases truthful tricky.
"This is simply a contributing subordinate of the community. Pismo’s, everybody knows Pismo's," Rios explained. "It could person been his transgression history. It could person besides been that has thing to bash with it, but erstwhile they were moving names, it pinged his due to the fact that helium does person a transgression history. So that mightiness person been what enactment him connected ICE's radar. But it doesn't needfully mean that that's the main crushed wherefore he's present being detained."
For now, the Behpoor household hopes the Board of Immigration Appeals volition reopen his lawsuit truthful Psalm tin instrumentality to his community.
"My hubby works truthful hard. Not due to the fact that helium has to, but due to the fact that helium genuinely loves to. He's conscionable not an exceptional hubby and father but besides is an unthinkable person to everyone," Lera explained. "He has a profound interaction connected the Fresno community. He's a bully Samaritan and he's lived successful America for implicit 39 years. He is arsenic American, arsenic immoderate American calved here."
Both accidental they are grateful for each the support.
"Psalm plays a truly important relation astatine Pismo's. A batch of radical travel to spot him due to the fact that helium leaves a bully content and helium helps everyone," Lera said with a smile. "Our customers and the Fresno assemblage has been reaching retired and asking however helium is, and they're praying for him and praying for us."
Psalm said, "It makes maine consciousness truly bully due to the fact that I emotion our community; I emotion our Fresno community. The relationships that I've gained implicit time. It's wherefore I thrive successful hospitality due to the fact that I genuinely attraction and genuinely emotion people."
To assistance their family, click here.
