In a stunning twist that truly no one saw coming, 90 Day Fiance star Jay Smith was released from ICE custody this week.
His bailout came as a major surprise for several reasons, but a lot of fans want to hear from him.
How does Jay feel about his incarceration?
What are his plans now? Will he just wait for deportation or is he going to fight for legal residency?
Here is what Jay has to say in his first statement since his release:
Jay did not have a fun July
He spent almost the entire month behind bars. Now, for the first time, he is breaking his silence.
Ashley took out a protection order
On July 1, she obtained a Protection From Abuse order. Jay had allegedly broken into her home, and Ashley apparently had evidence of alleged abuse during their marriage (awful stuff). The goal of the PFA was to keep Jay away.
Jay promptly broke the rules
As you can see in his fateful Instagram Story, Jay discussed the PFA … which he’s not allowed to do. This was a violation, and so the police contacted him and told him that he would be arrested.
Jay did the smart thing, here
He voluntarily turned himself in to authorities, and even implied as much on Instagram — even if most followers didn’t yet know what was going on.
Jay followed through and was arrested
Because he is not an American citizen (or even, it is believed, a legal resident), Jay was then placed in ICE custody.
Even Ashley was devastated
This is not how she wanted this to end. Yes, Jay had cheated on her — and allegedly done much worse — but the part of her that still loves him hated the idea of him spending weeks at a time in a cell.
Jay remained on Instagram … sort of
His girlfriend, named Kayla, continued to operate his social media on his behalf in order to plead with fans to continue to support Jay.
She was his alleged “side piece”
Ashley has described her as a stripper-turned-bottle-service-girl. Kayla has countered that she was always a bottle service girl. (Disclaimer: there is nothing wrong with any kind of sex work, including stripping).
Jay and Kayla have been together for a while
Ashley believes that Kayla and Jay have been together since January. At least, she says that she discovered that Jay was in a secret relationship in early April, and saw that it had been going on for months. Which means that their dramatic reconciliation in January was, on one side, a lie.
She even set up a GoFundMe
Jay is a controversial 90 Day Fiance star to say the least, and that may be why the GoFundMe did not meet its goal immediately.
And then there was this …
Leaked texts appeared to accuse Jay of abuse and spousal rape. Plenty of people who might have donated to Jay despite his cheating knew to drew the line at an alleged abuser.
Jay also had his day in court
He was found to have (flagrantly) violated his PFA, and was fined $100 and sentenced to one day — time served. However, since he’s not here legally and didn’t have bail money, Jay was returned to ICE custody.
Then, Jay got good news
The owner of Ego ink tattoo shop took to Instagram on Wednesday to announce that he was going to personally bail Jay, his employee, out of custody. Not everybody would drop $4,500 on a notorious scoundrel who will very likely be deported within a matter of weeks.
Jay went free
As you can see, his girlfriend Kayla was delighted to see him out and about
Jay seemed happy to see her, too
If you temporarily ignore almost everything that you know about Jay, this becomes a very tender moment.
Now, Jay is breaking his silence
“This past month has been very eye-opening for me,” Jay wrote in his Instagram Story on Thursday, August 1. Notably, he wrote this almost an entire month after his incarceration.
He’s trying to look at the positive
“I’ve lost and I’ve gained,” Jay acknowledges. “But most of all, I’ve learned a lot!”
He knows who his friends — and enemies — are
“This situation has made me realize all who are with me and all who are against me,” Jay writes. “And I have been given a second chance and I will make the best of it to my ability.”
To begin with …
“I’ll start by expressing my appreciation for all of the help and support I’ve gotten,” Jay reveals. “From my family, loved ones, attorneys, boss/coworkers, friends, and to all my followers and persons that prayed for me and also donated to my GoFundMe campaign.”
He really is appreciative
“I am beyond grateful,” Jay gushes. “And without your help, I would not have been a free man today.”
Finally …
“One last thanks to the people who walked in my life and made it better,” Jay concludes. “And thanks to the ones that walked out and made it amazing.”
This has been an ordeal for him
Even people who strongly resent Jay after all that they’ve heard have mixed feelings about what he’s gone through. ICE is a wildly unpopular organization for many reasons. Plenty of people would like to see Jay deported home but also see ICE dismantled. As we said, it’s a complicated topic.
What did that last part of his statement mean?
We think that Jay is thanking Ashley for removing herself from his life and therefore making it amazing. We definitely think that they’re both going to be happier apart. Ashley can still be a cougar but find a guy who doesn’t have Jay’s issues. And Jay … well, maybe he should speak to a therapist about why he feels compelled to cheat.