When Katy Kahmann graduated from Bemidji State in 1980, she immediately began working as a customs inspector at U.S. ports of entry.

She then became an inspector with Immigration and Naturalization Services. The formation of Homeland Security in 2003 merged both into the current U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency.

Kahmann eventually landed in the deferred inspections office at Boston’s Logan International Airport, where the most difficult immigration cases ended up. She typically dealt with lawful residents returning to the United States who had a record of a conviction. Some were paroled for a hearing and others were deported.

She studied the law while enforcing it, eventually earning a law degree. Kahmann retired in 2015 and opened a private practice that included pro bono work for youth or young adults seeking to remain in the United States to avoid persecution or danger in their home country.

“Now I’m on the other side of the fence,” she said. “Besides being neglected or abused, these kids have all witnessed gang violence, and two had people murdered on their doorstep.”

They are so desperate, they endanger their lives trying to reach relatives in the United States. Federal regulations allow those who were harmed in their own country to seek asylum or some other status. Kahmann’s work involves helping these individuals stay in the United States.

“I work with the small percentage that has relief available to them by law,” she said. “They have a chance to become legal. It is much better for them to have a secure start, and better for our economy if they are legal, work and pay taxes. It is humbling when you see the impact this has on someone’s life.”

Kahmann lives in Middleton, Mass., with her husband, Matt Farrell. They have three adult children.