美联社的一项核查发现，近一年来，移民部门一直拘留并试图驱逐一名患有精神疾病的男子，而其母亲、律师和公共记录均表示，他在美国出生，并非如他所坚称的那样出生于牙买加。
An Associated Press review has found that for nearly a year immigration authorities have detained and sought to deport a mentally ill man whose mother, lawyers and public records say was born in the United States and not Jamaica as he claims.
艾奥瓦州艾奥瓦城——美联社的一项核查发现，近一年来，移民部门一直拘留并试图驱逐一名患有精神疾病的男子，而其母亲、律师和公共记录均表示，他在美国出生，并非如他所坚称的那样出生于牙买加。
RYAN J. FOLEY IOWA CITY, Iowa — For nearly a year, immigration authorities have detained and sought to deport a mentally ill man whose mother, lawyers and public records say was born in the United States and not Jamaica as he claims, a review by The Associated Press found.
美国移民和海关执法局无权拘留美国公民，但长期以来一直这样做，通常持续数小时或数天，发生在官员误认身份或无法立即核实国籍的情况下。移民律师表示，将近10个月的不当拘留实属罕见，但也并非没有先例。
Immigration and Customs Enforcement has no authority to detain U.S. citizens, but has long done so, usually for hours or days, when officers mistake identities or can’t immediately verify citizenship. Immigration lawyers say a nearly 10-month improper detention would be rare but not unprecedented.
监管美国移民和海关执法局的国土安全部对该男子是美国公民一事提出异议，并在未提供证据的情况下指称，他为获取曾持有15年的美国护照而提交的出生证明是伪造的。但美联社的核查发现了支持其母亲和法律团队说法的 文件，证明他出生在佛罗里达州，因此不受美国移民和海关执法局管辖。
The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, disputes that the man is a U.S. citizen and alleges, without providing evidence, that the birth certificate he submitted to obtain a U.S. passport that he held for 15 years was fraudulent. But AP’s review found documents that support claims by his mother and legal team that he was born in Florida and therefore not subject to ICE’s authority.
这些调查结果表明，在特朗普政府急于驱逐大量涉嫌非法滞留境内人员的背景下，粗略的调查、松懈的监督以及可能拒绝承认错误的态度，可能导致一名美国公民在2026年的几乎全年里都被困其中。
The findings suggest that a cursory investigation, lax oversight, and possibly a refusal to admit a mistake may have ensnared a U.S. citizen for nearly all of 2026 as the Trump administration rushes to deport large numbers of people suspected of being in the country illegally.
被扣押人员坚称自己出生在牙买加 法律文件显示，这名目前仍被关押在被称作“斯皮德韦大牢”的美国移民和海关执法局设施内的男子名叫菲利普·詹姆斯，现年39岁，他也使用费利比·西亚加-科克这个名字。他的律师正在对移民法官将其驱逐到牙买加的裁决提起上诉，一名联邦法官已表示，他可能很快就会对一项将其释放出狱的请愿作出裁决。
Detainee insists he was born in Jamaica Still locked up at ICE’s so-called Speedway Slammer diana is Phillip James, a 39-year-old who also goes by the name Felibi Siagha-Coke, legal filings show. His lawyers are appealing an immigration judge’s ruling that he be deported to Jamaica, and a federal judge has indicated he could soon rule on a petition to free him from custody.
美联社的审查发现，在寻求拘留并驱逐他时，移民当局依据詹姆斯的说法，即他出生于牙买加并于2009年非法入境美国。但牙买加官方否认有任何记录显示他出生或拥有该国公民身份，公开记录显示，詹姆斯也无法提供证明。
In seeking to detain and deport him, immigration authorities relied on James’ word that he was born in Jamaica and entered the U.S. illegally in 2009, the AP review found. But Jamaican officials have denied any record that he was born or has citizenship there, and James has been unable to provide proof, public records show.
根据最近对他进行评估的医学专家向法庭提交的报告，詹姆斯坚称自己出生于牙买加，这是一种宏大妄想，是他被诊断出患有的偏执型精神分裂症的一个症状。特别是，他声称自己是一位前牙买加总理的私生子，也是黎巴嫩一个皇室家族的后裔，并声称拥有黎巴嫩公民身份，但均缺乏证据。
James’ insistence that he was born in Jamaica is a grand delusion, a symptom of paranoid schizophrenia with which he has been diagnosed, according to reports filed in court by medical experts who have recently assessed him. In particular, he claims that he is the illegitimate son of a former Jamaican prime minister and the descendant of a royal family in Lebanon, where he also claims citizenship despite a lack of evidence.
一位心理学家得出结论，由于精神疾病的严重性，包括根深蒂固的妄想信念体系，詹姆斯不是“一位可靠的史料提供者”。专家称该案例显示ICE如何错误处理公民身份纠纷 西北大学教授杰奎琳·斯蒂文斯研究ICE错误拘留公民已有二十年，她说，她并不惊讶ICE会根据詹姆斯声称自己出生在国外而寻求将其驱逐。她说，她熟悉其他类似案件，在这些案件中，精神疾病和残疾发挥了作用，导致了类似的不公。
One psychologist concluded James was not “a reliable historian due to the serious nature of his mental illness, including a deeply entrenched delusional belief system.”Expert says case shows how ICE mishandles citizenship disputes Northwestern University professor Jacqueline Stevens, who has studied ICE’s wrongful detention of citizens for two decades, said she is not surprised ICE would seek to deport James based on his claims of being foreign-born. She said she was familiar with other cases where mental illness and disabilities have played a role in similar injustices.
“在这些案件中发生的是，与驱逐相符的证据被视为准确，而与之不符的证据被视为欺诈，”她说。“这不是个别案件。这是ICE处理美国公民身份主张的一种特征，而非漏洞。” 国土安全部否认ICE拘留美国公民，并称面临驱逐程序的被拘留者享有正当程序。
“What’s going on in these cases is that evidence that’s consistent with deportation is treated as accurate and evidence that is inconsistent is treated as fraudulent,” she said. “This case is not a one-off. This is a feature, not a bug, of how ICE handles claims of U.S. citizenship.”The Department of Homeland Security denied that ICE detains U.S. citizens, and says detainees facing removal proceedings receive due process.
详述詹姆斯公民身份声称的记录，与数千起涉及美国移民和海关执法局被扣押人员的案件一样，并未出现在联邦法院系统的在线数据库中。美联社在记者新闻自由委员会的协助下，已提起诉讼，以推翻限制查阅此类文件的政策。
The records detailing James’ claim to citizenship, like thousands of cases involving ICE detainees, were not available in the federal court system’s online database. The AP, with the assistance of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, has filed a lawsuit to overturn a policy limiting access to such documents.
非营利组织“人身保护令案卷”的一名志愿者前往印第安纳州的一个法院，应美联社的要求复印了这些记录，该组织致力于使这些记录向公众公开。
A volunteer for the group Habeas Dockets, a nonprofit which works to make the records publicly available, went to an Indiana courthouse to make copies of the records at AP’s request.
这名被扣押人员曾拥有美国护照长达15年根据其律师提交并由其母亲证明的出生证明，詹姆斯于1987年出生于佛罗里达州奥兰治县，母亲是美国公民，父亲是牙买加国民。根据其母亲提交的一份宣誓书，他自幼患有精神疾病。宣誓书称，他在青春期变得难以管教后，与父亲一起住在佛罗里达州，其父亲已于2024年去世。
Detainee had a US passport for 15 years James was born to a U.S. citizen mother and Jamaican national father in Orange County, Florida, in 1987, according to the birth certificate filed by his lawyers and attested to by his mother. He has suffered from mental illness since he was a child, according to an affidavit submitted by his mother. He lived in Florida with his father, who died in 2024, after he became hard to control as an adolescent, the affidavit said.
美联社独立获取的一份1988年确立詹姆斯父子关系的法院文件，与出生证明上的细节相吻合，包括他的出生日期、生父母的身份以及他们在佛罗里达州的住所。
A 1988 court document in a case that established James’ paternity, obtained independently by AP, matches details on the birth certificate, including his date of birth, the identities of his birth parents and their residence in Florida.
他于2008年以出生名获发一本美国护照，在申请时提交了出生证明。2023年，在获得纽约法院关于将名字更改为费利佩·贝拉·德·坎贝尔·科克（Felipe Bella De Campbell Coke）的命令后，他申请了一本新护照，该申请也获批了。
He was issued a U.S. passport in 2008 under his birth name, submitting the birth certificate with his application. In 2023, he asked for a new passport after getting a court order to change his name to Felipe Bella De Campbell Coke in New York, and that also was approved.
但在2024年初，出于尚不清楚的原因，他提交了一系列关于美国公民身份和免受驱逐保护的申请。他声称自己出生于牙买加，并通过被美国公民收养而获得公民身份，并讲述了一个无法核实且错综复杂的故事，还虚假声称自己出生于1992年。
But beginning in 2024, for reasons that are unclear, he filed a series of applications for U.S. citizenship and protections from deportation. He claimed he was born in Jamaica and acquired citizenship as an adopted child of U.S. citizens, telling a convoluted story that could not be verified and falsely claiming he was born in 1992.
尽管如此，政府还是撤销了他的护照，并拒绝了他的公民身份申请。政府表示，他于1987年与詹姆斯（James）同月出生在牙买加，其“真实身份”是费利比·西亚加·巴拉迪·坎比尔·科克（Felibi Siagha Baladi Kambil Coke），这是他最近才采用的一个名字。
Nonetheless, the government revoked his passport and denied his application for citizenship. It said he was born in Jamaica in the same month as James in 1987 and that his “true identity” was Felibi Siagha Baladi Kambil Coke, a name he had recently adopted.
根据法庭文件，撤销其护照的决定并未详细说明得出这一结论的过程。牙买加当局已告知詹姆斯的律师，他们没有该名字的人的出生或公民身份记录。
The decision revoking his passport did not elaborate on how it reached that conclusion. Jamaican authorities have told James’ lawyers that they have no record of the birth or citizenship of a person by that name, according to court filings.
国土安全部对美联社表示，原护照是根据一份“虚假出生证明”签发的，但没有回答后续问题，也没有提供任何证据。
Department of Homeland Security told AP the original passport was issued based on a “fraudulent birth certificate” but did not answer follow-up questions or provide any proof.
记录显示，詹姆斯无法解释自己是如何弄到一份佛罗里达州出生证明的。
Records show James could not explain how he ended up with a Florida birth certificate.
他在2025年7月接受美国公民及移民服务局采访时表示：“直到今天我也不明白。”
“To this day I don’t understand,” he said in a July 2025 interview with U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
移民法庭听证会结束后，美国移民和海关执法局逮捕了他。移民当局指控他在公民身份申请被拒后非法滞留该国。在将目标对准詹姆斯时，移民和海关执法局指出了他的犯罪历史，其中包括2011年因持致命武器袭击罪被定罪，并在佛罗里达州入狱五年。但该案及其他案件的记录均将他列为美国公民。
ICE arrested him after immigration court hearing Immigration authorities alleged he was in the country illegally after his applications for citizenship were rejected. In targeting James, ICE pointed to a criminal history that includes a 2011 assault with a deadly weapon conviction that sent him to prison in Florida for five years. But records in that case, and others, list him as a U.S. citizen.
2025年12月，当他住在纽约市时，移民和海关执法局启动了将其驱逐出境的程序，并向他发出了出庭通知。一名法官于1月5日推迟了驱逐程序，特工们在听证会结束后将他逮捕。
ICE initiated proceedings to remove him in December 2025, issuing a notice to appear in immigration court, when he was living in New York City. A judge postponed his removal proceedings on Jan. 5 and agents arrested him after the hearing.
詹姆斯被带到印第安纳州邦克山的迈阿密拘留中心。这是一个最高安全级别的监狱，根据一项州与联邦的合作协议，该监狱最近开始关押多达1000名移民和海关执法局被扣押人员。该设施因呼应印第安纳州与赛车运动的渊源而被白宫绰号为“赛道大满贯”（Speedway Slammer），它曾面临关于过度拥挤和医疗疏忽的投诉，且已有至少两名被扣押人员死亡。
James was taken to the Miami Detention Center in Bunker Hill, Indiana, a maximum-security prison that had recently started housing up to 1,000 ICE detainees under a state-federal partnership. Nicknamed the Speedway Slammer by the White House in a nod to Indiana’s connection to motor racing, the facility has faced complaints about overcrowding and medical neglect, and at least two detainees have died.
对于该州来说，这是一项利润丰厚的安排，在头两年里可能会带来2.13亿美元的收入——其中包括每天每名被羁押人员291美元的支付标准，是美国移民和海关执法局92美元的床位费中位数的三倍多。州长迈克·布劳恩的办公室拒绝就詹姆斯的案件发表评论。
It’s a lucrative arrangement for the state that could generate $213 million in the first two years — including payments of $291 per detainee per day, over three times ICE’s median bed rate of $92. Gov. Mike Braun’s office declined to comment on James’ case.
詹姆斯最初担任自己的律师。与刑事被告不同，被羁押人员不保证获得法律顾问服务。詹姆斯最初担任自己的自辩律师，对将其羁押的合法性提出异议，他自称是牙买加人，并声称拥有黎巴嫩国籍。
Detainee initially acted as his own lawyer Unlike criminal defendants, detainees are not guaranteed legal counsel. James initially acted as his own attorney in challenging his detention as unlawful, calling himself a Jamaica native and claiming citizenship in Lebanon.
法庭记录显示，代表美国移民和海关执法局以及在4月份下令将其驱逐至牙买加的移民法官的律师采信了詹姆斯的说辞。除了他声称出生于牙买加之外，美国移民 and 海关执法局还提交了证据，显示他申请了一张牙买加国民保险登记卡，该卡对非公民开放。
Lawyers representing ICE and the immigration judge who ordered his removal to Jamaica in April have taken James at his word, court records show. Other than his claims of Jamaican birth, ICE submitted evidence showing he applied for a Jamaican national insurance registration card, which is available to noncitizens.
詹姆斯现在由布朗克斯辩护律师事务所代理，这是一个拥有合同来代表纽约贫困被羁押人员的非营利组织。
James is now represented by the Bronx Defenders, a nonprofit which has a contract to represent indigent New York detainees.
在发现了出生证明和他在佛罗里达州的母亲之后，他们在8月19日向联邦法院提交了一份请愿书，寻求将其释放。他们还向移民上诉委员会对他的驱逐令提起上诉。他的律师拒绝置评，并表示詹姆斯不会接受采访。
After discovering the birth certificate and his mother in Florida, they filed a petition in federal court seeking his release on Aug. 19. They’re also appealing his removal order to the Board of Immigration Appeals. His lawyers declined to comment and said James would not grant an interview.
政府尚未承认任何错误。在9月28日的一份文件中，美国助理检察官布赖恩·欧文称詹姆斯是“一名牙买加本土人士和黎巴嫩公民，在未获准入境的情况下进入了美国”。欧文辩称，詹姆斯的国籍主张应由移民法庭裁决，而不是由联邦法官裁决。
The government has not acknowledged any error. In a Sept. 28 filing, Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian Irvin called James “a native of Jamaica and a citizen of Lebanon who entered the United States without admission.”Irvin argued James’ claim to citizenship should be decided in immigration court, rather than by a federal judge.
美国地区法官达蒙·莱希蒂预计将对寻求释放詹姆斯的请愿书作出裁决。
U.S. District Judge Damon Leichty is expected to rule on the petition seeking James’ release.
曾在该机构担任过幕僚长的前美国移民和海关执法局（ICE）官员黛博拉·弗莱舍克（Deborah Fleischaker）表示，詹姆斯（James）的案件很复杂，但他是美国公民的证据似乎很充分。她称，错误拘留事件时有发生，“但你希望这种情况极其罕见，并且持续时间尽可能短暂”。她和其他专家表示，如果詹姆斯不是牙买加公民，牙买加当局不太可能接受他，但美国移民和海关执法局仍可能会试图将他驱逐到第三方国家。
Deborah Fleischaker, a former ICE official who once served as the agency’s chief of staff, said the James case was complicated but the evidence that he’s a U.S. citizen appears strong. Wrongful detentions happen, she said, “but you’d like it to be very rare and for as brief a time as possible.”She and other experts said Jamaican authorities would not likely accept James if he’s not a citizen there, but that ICE could still try to remove him to a third-party country.
她表示：“我担心的是，为了追求驱逐出境的数量，他被卷入了这台机器中。”
“I would worry that in their quest for deportation numbers, he is in the machine,” she said.