A Canadian woman has spoken out about being held with her seven-year-old autistic daughter in ICE custody for the past 13 days.
Tania Warner said in an interview with CTV News that she is the most stressed she's ever been in her life. Her daughter, Ayla, has also been complaining about a rash that has spread to much of the lower half of her body.
Warner believes the rash was caused by stress and the commercial cleaners used to wash the ICE-issued clothing. After pushing multiple times, Warner was given hydrocortisone cream.
'I've been unlawfully detained,' she said. 'My mind is so numb, I'm doing my best to keep my head on straight.'
Warner, who is originally from British Columbia, is married to an American man in Texas and has been living in the United States for about five years.
Warner and Ayla were taken into custody by ICE agents at a border checkpoint in Sarita, Texas, while they were on their way home to Kingsville from a baby shower.
After spending a few days at a facility in Ursula, they were moved to Dilley Immigration Processing Center, where they remain.
'Being incarcerated with a child is the most surreal experience I've ever had. I had no idea that this was a possibility for us, being as we have legal paperwork filed,' she said.
Tania Warner and her seven-year-old daughter Ayla have been in ICE custody for the past 13 days
Ayla is autistic and has been complaining of a rash that has spread to much of the lower half of her body
Warner is in the process of applying for a green card for her and Ayla and according to CTV News, they were given prima facie status by the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS).
Essentially, this means that authorities have determined that she and her daughter meet basic eligibility on first glance. However, it is not a final approval.
A prima facie determination allows individuals without permanent legal status to stay in the country while USCIS fully investigates their background. She said she and Ayla's statuses expired in August and June, respectively.
Warner has acknowledged that her husband Edward's sex offender status has complicated her immigration case in the US. It is tied to a 1999 incident he has received deferred adjudication for. He is seeking clemency.
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) told CTV News that Warner overstayed her visa and was in the country illegally, which means she could have been arrested at any time.
'ICE does not separate families. Parents are asked if they want to be removed with their children or ICE will place the children with a safe person the parent designates,' the spokesperson also told the outlet.
The Daily Mail approached DHS and ICE for further comment.
Warner said that she was not given the opportunity to hand Ayla off to a trusted adult.
The facility in Dilley has been criticized for its alleged treatment of detained families.
According to recently filed court documents, nearly 600 immigrant children were held there past the 20-day limit in December 2025 and January 2026. Lawyers allege they were not given adequate food, healthcare or mental health services.
Liam Conejo Ramos, the five-year-old boy who was taken into custody in Minnesota while wearing a blue bunny hat, was among the detainees at the Dilley facility.
Edward is trying to get his wife and stepdaughter out of the detention center. Warner said his sex offender status has complicated her immigration case even further
Edward has hired a lawyer and started a GoFundMe to help get his loved ones back
Warner told CTV News that her living conditions are better than the average detainees because she has a child with her.
She said she and Ayla are in a room with 12 bunks, a couch and a TV. Ayla is also able to attend school and use a playground.
Ayla understands her freedoms have been limited but sometimes needs to be reminded she can't run around whenever she wants to, Warner said.
'The government that's supposed to protect people, tore her out of her environment, forced her into a processing facility and then into incarceration. This is going to be one of her core childhood memories,' she said.
As Warner's case gains notoriety, politicians in the US and Canada are coming to her aid.
Representative Vicente Gonzalez, the Democrat who represents the district containing the detention facility she is in, revealed he is in contact with the Warner family and that he is pressing for her and her daughter's 'immediate release'.
'Tania has a work permit and is part of the fabric of our Kingsville community; she nor her daughter Ayla, a 7-year-old with autism, should be in detention. We must bring them home and reunite yet another family being ripped apart by this Administration's rogue immigration enforcement operations,' Gonzalez wrote on social media.
Amelia Boultbee, a member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, said she too is advocating for the family.
'We're working with consular services, and I'm in touch with various contacts at the federal government to see if we can find a legal or diplomatic avenue to either secure their release or speed up the process,' she said.
Meanwhile, Warner's husband is also working to get her and his stepdaughter out of the detention facility by hiring a lawyer. The GoFundMe he started has raised more than $13,000 as of Friday afternoon.