N.H. green card holder denied re-entry to U.S. after visiting native Canada

He’s lived in the U.S. since he was 3. At 46, he was denied re-entry at the border.

A New Hampshire man is not being allowed to return home after taking a family trip to Canada.

Chris Landry is a legal U.S. resident and has lived in the Granite State since he was 3 years old. He has a partner, five children and a job in manufacturing.

He was stopped Sunday at the border in Houlton, Maine, while returning from a family vacation.

“They pulled me aside and started questioning me about my past convictions in New Hampshire,” Landry told NBC10 Boston.

Three hours later, the 46-year-old was told he couldn’t come home, despite having a green card and being a legal U.S. resident.

“They denied me re-entry and said, ‘Don’t come back or we will detain you,’ and the only way for me to get back in was to see an immigration judge,” he told NBC10 Boston from New Brunswick.

In 2004 and 2007, Landry faced charges of marijuana possession and driving with a suspended license, but he says he’s had no criminal record since then.

He was given a suspended sentence and paid his fines.

“I never thought that that would threaten my status as a resident of the United States,” he said.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection told NBC10 Boston, “Possessing a green card is a privilege, not a right, and under our nation’s laws, our government has the authority to revoke a green card if our laws are broken and abused. Lawful Permanent Residents presenting at a U.S. port of entry with previous criminal convictions may be subject to mandatory detention and/or may be asked to provide additional documentation to be set up for an immigration hearing.”

“It’s just very uncertain for me right now,” said Landry. “I might end up spending the rest of my life in Canada. Who knows if I’ll ever have the right to re-enter the United States at this point?”

Trump administration ‘gone too far,’ said Landry

Landry says he’s critical of U.S. President Donald Trump’s scrutiny of the border between Canada and the U.S.

“In the United States … It doesn’t matter if you’re a better person now, 20 years later, they’re going to hold it against you.”

He said he was supportive of Trump before he was elected, but he said he felt misled.

“If I had known that he was going to do this to hundreds, if not thousands of people across America, whether they deserve it or not, like, I don’t know if I would have supported that,” he said.

“As far as supporting this administration, it definitely has changed my views. I think it’s gone too far.”