SALT LAKE CITY (KTVX/KUCW) – A 37-year-old professional violinist who has lived in Utah for most of his life was taken into ICE custody while on a work trip to Colorado last week.
John Shin immigrated to Utah on a visa with his father from South Korea when he was a child, according to his attorney Adam Crayk.
He went to elementary school, high school and college in the Beehive State, graduating from Utah State University before going on to play on some of the biggest stages, including a stint with the Utah Symphony and Ballet West.
On Tuesday, Shin’s wife, Danae Snow, an American citizen, told Nexstar’s KTVX/KUCW that she got a heartbreaking phone call from him on her birthday, Wednesday, Aug. 20.
“That morning, he was texting me, ‘Happy birthday, I love you so much,’ and then by that afternoon, I got the phone call, ‘Honey, I’ve been detained by ICE. I love you and the kids, and they’re sending me to a detainment center,” Snow said behind tears. “I just thought, ‘Oh my gosh, I don’t know how this can happen.'”
Snow described Shin as a charismatic, selfless person who not only contributes to society in a big way, but also to her family.
“They say that there’s stepdads and then there’s dads who step up, and he’s really the dad who stepped up, and he’s loved my kids just as his own,” Snow said.
According to Crayk, ICE arrested Shin because of a charge of impaired driving several years ago while he was struggling with the death of his father.
“It looks like John back in 2019 was charged with a DUI, but ultimately resolved his case in 2020 with an impaired driver [charge],” Crayk said. “He has successfully completed all of his probation, completed treatment classes, everything he was ordered to do … everything was completed.”
Shin had his driver’s license reinstated and was able to drive on Utah roads again with insurance.
“The problem that you have, though, is as someone who is coming to the United States and who doesn’t currently have proper documentation because when you get a DUI, DACA gets taken — immigration will not let you have DACA with a DUI,” Crayk said. “He becomes a priority, especially under the current administration, so he was taken into ICE custody because he accepted and did an agreement in Tooele County for an impaired driver, which caused ICE to take him into custody.”
Crayk is aiming to get Shin out of the ICE detention center in Aurora, Colorado, during Shin’s first court appearance next Tuesday.
In the meantime, musicians who played along with Shin have been demonstrating at the Utah state capitol throughout the week, in hopes of getting the attention of lawmakers.
