Dr. Shohreh Ghasemi, an Atlanta-based oral and plastic surgeon originally from Iran, is at the center of a cross-border legal storm after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained her in Vermont. Authorities say she slipped into Derby, Vermont, after being denied entry at a Canadian crossing in Toronto. The arrest has drawn supporters to the federal courthouse in Burlington and kicked off a legal fight that landed in federal court this week. Her lawyers say she routinely travels abroad to lecture and is working toward permanent residency in the United States.
According to federal reporting, ICE agents took Ghasemi into custody after the alleged illegal crossing, and prosecutors accuse her of reentering the country following the denial in Toronto. The case has left colleagues and patients in Georgia wondering how a city-based surgeon ended up in a Vermont detention center, as reported by CBS News Atlanta.
Federal court filings and a temporary order
Ghasemi's legal team filed a habeas petition and an emergency motion for a temporary restraining order in the U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont on July 21, and a judge quickly signed an order that, for now, blocks her removal from the district. The docket shows a July 22 hearing was scheduled and lists the ACLU Foundation of Vermont among organizations connected to the case. Those details appear in public court records compiled on Habeas Dockets.
What prosecutors say and the defense response
In court papers, prosecutors claim Ghasemi falsified her age on identification documents and practiced dentistry in 2023 without a Georgia license, framing those allegations as part of what they call "years-long fraudulent misrepresentations." Her attorney, Jared Carter, has pushed back in comments to reporters, noting that she frequently travels to speak at conferences and arguing that "she should never have been denied entry in the first place." Those accounts were reported by WCAX.
Why the case is drawing attention
The case is getting traction in part because it involves a practicing surgeon with an international profile, and in part because it comes at a time of stepped-up immigration enforcement nationwide. Recent reporting and data show ICE detentions spiked in June amid a broader enforcement push, a backdrop that advocates say makes high-profile cases harder to ignore; see reporting from WTOP. Ghasemi's conference schedule shows she has stayed active on the lecture circuit and is listed as a maxillofacial surgeon from Georgia in the AMWC Dubai 2025 program, a point her lawyers highlight. See the program from AMWC.
What comes next
Ghasemi remains in federal custody while the habeas petition and related motions move through court. Filings and calendar entries lay out deadlines for briefing and a series of upcoming hearings, and the temporary restraining order will keep her in the district while judges consider the petition. Reporters and advocates are watching the federal docket for new filings and any formal statements from ICE or prosecutors.
For patients and colleagues in Atlanta, the case raises immediate questions about licensing and oversight. For immigration advocates, it taps into broader tensions over current enforcement policy. Both sides are scheduled to return to court on the dates listed in the filings, and the outcome will determine whether this remains primarily an immigration removal fight or evolves into a longer criminal prosecution.
