A friend of a New Zealander detained by the US immigration service says it's a 'desperate' situation.  

Kiwi Sarah Shaw and her six-year-old son are at a Texas detention facility, after being arrested at the US border with Canada three weeks ago.  

Friend Victoria Besancon says the child's legal papers are all in order, but there was some difficulty with Shaw's. 

She says the two can't stay there. 

"The detention centres in America are pretty comparable to prisons, so she's not doing the best."

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