NRI PULSE STAFF REPORT
Atlanta, GA, August 25, 2026 — Venkata Vasamsetty, the longtime green-card holder and Wake County substitute teacher detained by immigration authorities earlier this month, has been granted release on a $7,500 bond while her immigration case continues.
An immigration judge in Georgia ruled Tuesday, Aug. 25, that Vasamsetty could be released after spending more than two weeks in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody.
Vasamsetty, a lawful permanent resident since 2013, was detained Aug. 11 when she reported for a scheduled ICE check-in in Charlotte. Her detention drew attention because an earlier removal case against her had been terminated by an immigration judge.
At Tuesday’s bond hearing, Department of Homeland Security attorney Abby Cannon acknowledged that Vasamsetty does not pose a danger to the community but argued that she was a significant flight risk, according to ABC11.
The government pointed to Vasamsetty’s history of travel between the United States and India. DHS told the court that she spent 61 days in the United States in 2019, 96 days in 2021 and 67 days in 2022, arguing that her extended periods abroad raised questions about whether she had maintained her U.S. permanent residency.
Attorney Helen Parsonage disputed the government’s characterization, saying many of Vasamsetty’s trips to India were connected to caring for her aging parents, including her father before his death.
Parsonage also emphasized her client’s record of complying with immigration authorities. Vasamsetty has never missed an immigration court appearance or an ICE check-in, she told the court. That included voluntarily reporting to ICE even after her earlier removal proceedings had been terminated.
Immigration Judge Chad Bayse found that history significant, ruling that DHS had not met its burden of showing that Vasamsetty would flee if released.
The judge cited Vasamsetty’s extensive ties to the United States, including her husband, two U.S.-citizen daughters and grandchildren, her home, tax records dating back to at least 2012, business ties and employment as an elementary school substitute teacher. She also has no criminal history, according to her attorney.
Wake County Public School System records obtained by ABC11 show Vasamsetty was hired as a substitute teacher on June 12, 2023, and remains an active employee.
Bayse nevertheless found that some flight risk existed because Vasamsetty has both the means and a history of international travel. He therefore rejected a request for the minimum bond and set it at $7,500.
The ruling means Vasamsetty can leave immigration detention once the bond is posted. Her family was working Tuesday to arrange payment and awaiting her release from the Georgia detention center.
Her release, however, does not end the immigration battle.
The dispute stems from Vasamsetty’s extended stays in India. In July 2022, she traveled there to care for her critically ill parents. According to her attorneys, she contracted COVID-19 and was hospitalized for nearly two weeks, delaying her return until February 2023.
When she returned after about seven months abroad, U.S. Customs and Border Protection alleged that she had abandoned her lawful permanent resident status and placed her in removal proceedings.
Vasamsetty fought the allegation, arguing that her absence was temporary and that she had maintained substantial ties to the United States. The earlier removal case was ultimately terminated after DHS missed a deadline to submit evidence, according to her attorneys.
She was nevertheless detained during the Aug. 11 ICE check-in, and a new Notice to Appear was issued the following day, according to attorney Zoe Ji Wilson, a friend and former colleague of Vasamsetty’s daughter.
Vasamsetty’s attorneys subsequently filed an emergency habeas corpus petition in federal court challenging her detention. The government later acknowledged that, under recent Middle District of Georgia precedent, she would be entitled to a bond hearing.
Tuesday’s ruling provides that opportunity for release but does not decide the central question of whether Vasamsetty abandoned her permanent residency. DHS continues to maintain that her extended periods outside the country amount to abandonment, while her attorneys argue that her family, home, employment, taxes and other ties demonstrate that she always intended the United States to remain her permanent home.
DHS has the right to appeal the bond ruling. The judge gave the government until Sept. 24 to do so.
For now, Vasamsetty’s family is preparing to post the $7,500 bond and bring her home after more than two weeks in immigration detention.
