The woman’s travel nightmare has raised questions about immigration enforcement and delays for people who need to go before an immigration judge.

In March 2025, a claim spread that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained British tourist Becky Burke in Washington state after she was refused entry into the U.S. Snopes readers wrote to us to ask about the legitimacy of a Facebook post purportedly written by Burke's father,

What was meant to be a life-changing four-month backpacking trip across North America has turned into a nightmare,” said the post from Becky’s father, Paul Burke.