An Iraq War veteran and legal permanent resident in the United States was detained in Arizona last month, despite what his family says were promises by federal authorities that he would be allowed to stay in the country.
It was a nontraditional Valentine's Day for Tanisha Hartwell-Parris and her husband, Marlon. Instead of a romantic, candlelit date night, the couple saw each only in stark, courtroom lighting and could do little more than exchange a few words.
Marlon Parris was in his 24th day in the custody of the federal government, one of the first to be detained under the new Trump Administration. On his way to an ATM to grab cash for the family's housekeeper on January 22, he was swarmed by unmarked SUVs with police lights blaring.
"He called me, and he was like, 'I think ICE is detaining me,'" wife Tanisha Hartwell-Parris recalls. "And I'm just like, what? Like I'm completely shocked, completely shocked."
Detained only three minutes away from their home in Laveen, Hartwell-Parris rushed to be with her husband. Upon seeing her husband in ICE custody, Hartwell-Parris called their immigration lawyer. When she asked agents why her husband was being detained, Hartwell-Parris says she was simply told her husband was "on a list."
Parris, originally from Trinidad and Tobago, entered the US in the late 90s, arriving as a minor, according to his wife. Only a few years after entering the U.S., Parris joined the Army, becoming one of the first deployed to Iraq after 9/11. Parris served through multiple deployments, long enough to witness the deaths of multiple close friends. During his time in service, Parris also developed PTSD, his wife says. Despite the tragedies Parris experienced overseas, Hartwell-Parris says her husband has pride for his military service.
In 2011, after he left the Army, Parris pled guilty and served five years in prison for a nonviolent felony drug charge.
"My husband is a very responsible person," Hartwell-Parris says. "He takes accountability for anything that he has done. Taking accountability comes with, if there is any time that needs to be served, I'm going to serve that time."
When Parris was released in 2016, he says he received a letter of no interest from ICE and the Department of Homeland Security, stating that he would be allowed to remain in the country even with his conviction.
Since leaving prison, Parris has graduated with honors from Grand Canyon University and started his own business. He also met and married Hartwell-Parris, with the two blending their families and choosing to raise their younger children in Laveen.
"From 2016 now to 2025, my husband hasn't even had a speeding ticket," Hartwell-Parris said.
Despite the work that Parris put in to move on from his conviction, and the promises he says the federal government gave that he would not be deported in the future, Parris was arrested within two days of President Donald Trump entering office.
Parris, a family man with a nonviolent criminal record and a history of service to the United States, does not fit the description of the "most violent" immigrants Trump frequently promised to prioritize for deportation.
"That's the hardest part that he suffers with, because it's kind of, in a sense, I did everything right and I'm still in this facility away from my family," Hartwell-Parris said.
Despite Parris being a legal permanent resident, when Trump was reelected, the family began to prepare. They talked to their children about what could happen, and they kept and traveled with a binder of all of Parris's immigration papers, including the letter of no interest from ICE.
Parris's experience in the military has made his case unique, leading to veteran groups and elected officials like state Senator Catherine Miranda to rally for his release.
"He has legal residency, so he should not be on alert," said Miranda, D-LD 27, who represents Parris in the state legislature.
Hartwell-Parris hopes her husband is ultimately seen for the man he is now, not the mistakes he's recognized and paid the price for.
"You have to be a very selfless person to fight for a country that's not even yours," she said.
She also calls on the federal government to "hold true to your word" and respect the commitment it made in 2016 after Parris's release, considering his lack of a criminal record in the last nine years.
Parris is now being held at a private detention facility in Florence, as Hartwell-Parris cares for the younger members of their family at home and makes the one-hour drive to visit her husband twice a week.
The Parrises remain hopeful, though they grapple with the possibility that even if Marlon is released he may be detained again under the Trump Administration's shifting immigration policy.
"I'm standing by my husband, as they say, ten toes down. I'm going to be with him every step of the way, so if that means deportation and, you know, we have to make that sacrifice to leave, we have no choice but to do that," Hartwell-Parris said. "I feel as though this is part of our vows, you know. Through thick and thin, you know, for richer or for poorer, it will truly be 'til death do us part."
