Jamaican-Born U.S. Veteran Facing Deportation Following Traffic Violation in Georgia

In a cruel twist of fate, a Jamaican-born U.S. military veteran who risked his life for his country is facing deportation after he was arrested for driving without license.

Godfrey Wade when he served in the U.S. military (Picture courtesy of April Watkins)Godfrey Wade is currently being held at a detention center in Lumpkin, Georgia and fiancee, April Watkins, has mounted an all-out campaign in hopes of sparing him from deportation.

Wade was swept up by Trump's immigration policies after canceling the Biden administration executive order which protected non-citizen veterans from being deported.

Watkins said Wade was detained by ICE agents during a traffic stop for driving without a valid license.

She said the 65-year-old grandfather has endured inhumane conditions in Atlanta's ICE detention center and then was transferred to the overcrowded Stewart Detention Center in Lumpkin, Georgia, where the conditions are worse.

Watkins said there, he has been denied a bed and sleeps on the dirty floor.

"This is a very real possibility for him to be deported, even though we secured an attorney who submitted a legal motion to temporarily halt deportation," she said. "We are currently waiting for his case to be reviewed by a judge which could take anywhere between weeks to months."

Watkins said she has set up a GoFundMe Page on Facebook to help pay for attorney's fees.

She's hoping the family can hire an attorney to present Wade's case before a court to prevent being deported but time is running out.

As of December 24,April Watkins and Godfrey Wade. (Picture courtesy of April Watkins)

Watkins said Wade is a legal resident who emigrated from Jamaica to New York as a teenager.

He was seeking U.S. citizenship but the process was difficult and often delayed.

She said during that process, a notice to appear before an immigration court in 2014 was sent to the wrong address, resulting in a removal order his lawyers have been fighting till this day.

According to his military record, Wade served in the U.S. Army's 7th Infantry Division during the 1970s and earned service medals and an honorable discharge.

He went on to earn several college degrees and was employed during his time in the United States.

Wade was working at a cafe when he was detained by ICE.

U.S. Rep. Robert Garcia (D-California), who sits on the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, condemned the arrests of Wade and other U.S. military vets who are non U.S. citizens, by ICE agents and vowed to fight the Trump administration on his immigration policies.

"These are U.S. veterans who served our country and were detained by ICE for days without due process or ability to call their families," he said during a December 11 Congressional hearing on the issue. "They are betrayed by their own country, which they fought so hard for, which they still fight for today. This is not the America we believe in."

Garcia added: The Donald Trump government is now arresting and detaining United States citizens with no right and no access to lawyers. That's why we are here and what we are fighting against."

Members of Congress accused the Trump administration of targeting non-citizens veterans for deportation.

According to the New York Times, Congress launched a probe in July and discovered that roughly 10,000 veterans have been deported since Trump returned to office in January 2025.  

About 16 million U.S. military veterans were born abroad.

Watkins said relatives visiting their loved ones detained at the ICE detention centers in George are left disheartened.

She said the inmates allegedly face drugs and theft, and some families are turned away from visitation, some driving over 300 miles to see their family members."If they allow you to visit, only five families can visit per hour on a first come, first serve basis," Watkins said. "And the food is sub par and repurposed for different meals, and the temperature stays below 60 degrees and detainees are constantly coughing."