A Jamaican woman has been sentenced in federal court for illegally reentering the United States after being deported twice.
Tanya James, 53, was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Court Judge Margaret R. Guzman to six months in prison. She will now face deportation proceedings. James had pleaded guilty in July to one count of unlawful reentry of a deported alien, after being indicted by a federal grand jury the previous month.
Court records show James was first deported to Jamaica in 2004 after a 2003 conviction for possession of cocaine base with intent to distribute and distribution of cocaine base. She was again deported in 2012 following a second removal order.
Despite the orders, James returned to the U.S. and was arrested in March 2024 for motor vehicle offenses. Immigration officials later took her into custody on May 12, 2025, after confirming she had reentered the country without permission.
The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Kristen Noto of the Worcester Branch Office. The announcement was made by U.S. Attorney Leah B. Foley and Patricia H. Hyde, Acting Field Office Director of ICE Enforcement and Removal Operations in Boston.
