As for why he was detained, ICE previously said Johnson has been under a removal order since 1991, having overstayed a six-month permission to stay, and has a criminal record. The N&O could not independently verify that record, nor would Gabri comment on it.<\/p>\n
Gabri said previously he was granted protection from deportation in 2004 and has complied with requirements stemming from that since.<\/p>\n
Johnson, who has been married for 30 years and has four children, came to the U.S. from Liberia at age 16 in the 1980s, a decade that began with a violent military coup and grew into political repression before erupting into civil war by its end. Since his arrival, he graduated from N.C. Central University in 2002 and has been a pastor for about 20 years.<\/p>\n
More details on detention and medical emergency<\/p>\n
Johnson was detained by ICE around 8:30 a.m. on July 15. He was taken to the Cary detention center, where he soon experienced a blood pressure crisis \u2014 stage 2 hypertension \u2014 and was admitted to WakeMed. Johnson had previously suffered a series of strokes in 2020 that led to brain damage, requiring him to take six to eight medications a day, Gabri previously told The N&O.<\/p>\n
After being released that evening from WakeMed, he remained in ICE custody and was transferred to Stewart Detention Center in Georgia the following day. While there, Gabri said her father told the family he was not consistently given his blood pressure and stroke medications. She said he also sometimes went without food or water during transfers, including one instance when agents took him to a military base and pressured him to sign deportation papers and board a plane, two days before a hearing to halt his deportation.<\/p>\n
On July 29, ICE flew Johnson to Texas, where he ended up at Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, about 40 miles south of Dallas. The next morning, Gabri said Johnson called his family and told them he loved them and was not feeling well. She said he told them he had not received food or medication in the 24 hours since he was flown from Georgia to Texas.<\/p>\n
Around 11 a.m. July 30, Johnson was admitted to a Dallas-area hospital. ICE confirmed at the time to The N&O he was hospitalized for \u201cstroke-like symptoms\u201d but denied allegations that he was denied medical care. ICE did not directly address The N&O\u2019s questions about Johnson\u2019s treatment before his hospitalization.<\/p>\n
Gabri and her family traveled to Texas on Aug. 1 and went to the hospital, where she said they were initially not allowed to see Johnson. They were ultimately allowed a one-hour visit and eventually traveled back to the Triangle \u2014 though they later returned to visit him again \u2014 to continue to advocate on Johnson\u2019s behalf. That included via a federal court case filed in Texas. Johnson\u2019s request for a temporary restraining order was filed on Tuesday, and the court ordered the following day that federal officials cannot deport him, including to another country apart from Liberia, or transfer him out of the court\u2019s jurisdiction while the case proceeds.<\/p>\n
Gabri said she got a call from her father\u2019s lawyer around 3 p.m. on Wednesday.<\/p>\n
Expecting bad news, she told the attorney, \u201cHonestly, I don\u2019t have the capacity.\u201d But the attorney said she\u2019d want to hear it.<\/p>\n
After the Wednesday order from the judge, ICE issued Johnson\u2019s release.<\/p>\n
What\u2019s next<\/p>\n
The immediate focus of the family right now is getting Johnson into therapy, said Gabri.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s been over a month of him being told (by doctors) that he needed to go to rehab, and that not getting the treatment that he needed could be holding him back from recovery,\u201d Gabri said Saturday, adding that it\u2019s not clear whether he\u2019ll be able to make a full recovery.<\/p>\n
Still, now that he can finally access care, Gabri said they just want to support him, having found a place to stay close to a first cousin who lives in the area. They don\u2019t have plans to bring him back to the Triangle, as doctors haven\u2019t given the OK for that and he can\u2019t presently walk.<\/p>\n
Gabri previously told The N&O in mid-August that, based on conversations with nurses, it was her understanding that her father was receiving very limited physical therapy at the hospital. She also said Johnson\u2019s right leg was secured to his bed with an ankle cuff, so he rarely left his bed. Gabri said nurses told her the cuff could increase the risk of another stroke because Johnson was taking anticoagulant medication.<\/p>\n
The hospital planned to transfer Johnson to a rehabilitation facility, Gabri said at the time, but the facility did not want ICE agents there. ICE requires agents to accompany detainees receiving outside care. Gabri said ICE then canceled the transfer and told the hospital Johnson would remain in its care. ICE said in a previous statement that it does not make clinical decisions or interfere with medical treatment.<\/p>\n
But once the judge\u2019s order was issued, Gabri said ICE left promptly, and Johnson has been \u201ca normal patient at the hospital for the first time since he was taken in.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was such a huge relief,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Still, she can\u2019t fully breathe yet. As for whether ICE can take him back after rehab, that\u2019s currently unclear, Gabri said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re not fully out of the woods legally, nor with his health,\u201d said Gabri. \u201cWe\u2019ve won a battle but not the war. We\u2019re still talking to the lawyers to figure out what our next step is.\u201d<\/p>\n
She\u2019s also looking to make emergency arrangements for passports, should her father end up getting deported to a third country that is not Liberia, a practice the Trump administration has escalated.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThe main thing our family is really looking forward to is just being able to have a family dinner at home; it\u2019s just something that we took for granted,\u201d Gabri said, with her family often grilling and her father making pepper soup.<\/p>\n \u201cIt started to feel like that would never happen again, and we were all grieving that so heavily. And now that that seems to be possible again, we just want to look forward to family dinner again and the home we\u2019ve lived in for 22 years,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n Twumasi Duah-Mensah contributed to this report.<\/p>\n This story was originally published September 12, 2026 at 3:47 PM.<\/p>\n