The detention of Vancouver businesswoman Jasmine Mooney at the U.S. border has sent shockwaves through Canada, with immigration lawyers sounding the alarm: the days of breezy border crossings are over. After a 12-day ordeal in what her family calls “inhumane” conditions, Mooney’s case is a stark signal that President Donald Trump’s January 2025 executive order is rewriting the rules for Canadians heading south.
Mooney, a former actress turned entrepreneur, was nabbed March 3 at the San Diego border crossing while seeking a TN visa—a trade-agreement perk letting Canadians and Mexicans snag work permits on the spot for certain jobs. Instead of a quick stamp, she landed in a privately run Arizona detention center, crammed into a cell with 30 others and scant amenities. She finally rolled back into Vancouver around midnight Saturday, rattled but free.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement pinned her detention on Trump’s latest immigration clampdown, and experts say it’s part of a broader “assault on legal immigration.” Jim Hacking, a St. Louis-based immigration lawyer with 17 years under his belt, calls it unprecedented. “I’ve never seen a TN visa holder detained for days and barred entry,” he said. “They could’ve just turned her away. This is about deterrence—sending a message that nobody’s welcome.”
Hacking’s seen a flurry of cases in the last 10 days: Canadians—some with permanent-resident cards—detained or deported in ways that defy the old playbook. He’s now telling non-U.S. citizens, including his Canadian clients, to stay put. “Canadians have been too casual about their status for years,” he warned. “That’s done. You’re as vulnerable as anyone now.”
Vancouver lawyer Richard Kurland agrees, predicting more headaches this summer. “U.S. border agents aren’t there to help you in—they’re there to keep you out,” he said. He points to Trump’s political muscle, flexed since January, as the driver. “This is a mandate to slam down hard on immigration, legal or not. Mooney’s a poster child for that shift.”
Her family says she tried crossing from British Columbia first, then detoured to Mexico after a prior success there. But Kurland cautions against banking on past wins—border decisions are a crapshoot now. “One day you’re in, the next you’re not,” he said. His advice? Be brutally honest with agents, ditch assumptions about “easy” crossings, and if they say hit the consulate, do it.
Mooney’s saga hints at bigger games too. Kurland reckons Trump’s playing the immigration card to muscle Canada on trade, just like last time. Meanwhile, her family’s tight-lipped beyond confirming she’s home safe, leaving the spotlight on a border that’s suddenly a lot less friendly.