Border Crossings: "If We Dont Make It I Will Email You From Jail"

From an exchange through Couchsurfing.com, a site that helps travellors connect with each other through the internet.

"Hi Gwalgen, you look like you possibly could help me?

i am a u.s. citizen and just moved back to the u.s. because my work contract ended in czech republic and i could not find any new work. well, my wife (czech citizen) and baby (dual citizen) were to come over, but her immigration papers were
denied because she worked illegally in the u.s. and now she has a 10 year ban and can't enter.   the immigration officer said seperation of family and financial difficulties do not constitute an "extreme hardship" for me, so they would not grant her a waiver. i was thinking she could fly into toronto and we could cross the border into new york in my car. my baby has her u.s. passport so that is no trouble, and my wife has a u.s. visa in her passport which is good. the problem is if they look in the computer they will see this ban. so, i ask you:

1) do you ever cross the border into new york?
2) if yes, what is the experience like and at what checkpoint?
3) do they look very closely at papers, ask a lot of questions, scan passports into a computer or simply wave people through and randomly inspect cars?

i know it is a bit risky, but i really have no
alternative. thanks for your time and if you could give
me any information this would be a great help.

best regards,"

"Hey

I've crossed the border into New York and they've always checked the computer to the best of my knowledge.  They used to just waive people through however the US has been critical of Canadian border security so that got tightened a lot since 2001.

I'd strongly suggest you speak with an immigration rights group about this for better information than I can give.  There may be border crossings that are less heavy than others in regards to security.

Good Luck and let me know if you and your wife make it!

Gwalgen"

"hey thanks for the quick response.  if we dont make it i will email you from jail explaining how they found my wife in the trunk...heheheh.  everybody who responded says they scan all passports so i am sure my wife would be denied entrance.  so i guess the only way is for them not see her and hope they dont check my trunk...ADVENTURE!  this is turning into a bigger problem then i was hoping for and i have already bought the flight ticket $800 so i am going for it!!!!
i'll let you know.
cheers."