Judge halts bid to deport Columbia grad student
Says Trump's attempt likely unconstitutional
By: Hannan Adely
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... A federal judge has ruled that the Trump administration's attempt to deport Columbia University graduate Mahmoud Khalil for his pro-Palestinian activism or beliefs is likely unconstitutional.
.....
In a 106-page opinion, U.S. District Court Judge Michael Farbiarz wrote that Khalil was likely to succeed in his case because the legal provisions used to justify his detention was "unconstitutionally vague."
..... Farbiarz, who presides in the District of New Jersey issued the opinion on May 28. [2025]
..... In the same opinion, the judge denied Khalil's bid for release form an immigration detention center in Louisiana, because of the U.S. government's allegations that his residency application contained inaccuracies. Those allegations needed more scrutiny, the judge wrote.
.....
Immigration agents arrested Khalil, a green card holder married to an America citizen, on March 8 [2025] in the lobby of his student apartment building in Manhattan. A Palestinian born in Syria, Khalil was a spokesman and negotiator for pro-Palestinian protesters at Columbia.
..... Khalil was not accused of any crime, Non-citizen can be deported if the Secretary of State finds that their presence threatens u. S. foreign policy interests, even if their beliefs, statements or association are "otherwise lawful," the trump administration argued. They cited a rarely used provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act as the basis.
..... Farbiarz wrote that the U.S. government "must meet higher standards" when making such determinations. The foreign policy statue, he added, is not clear on what is and is not allowed or on the limits of government power.
..... Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Khalil's activities fostered a hostile environment for Jewish students and undermined U.S. policy to combat antisemitism. But the government did not specify how Khalil's actions impacted U.S. relations with other countries, Farbiarz wrote.
..... Khalil and his attorneys have denied allegations of antisemitism and say U.S. officials have wrongly conflated criticism of Israel with antisemitism.
..... "This case, at least for now, is not about choosing between competing accounts of what happened at Columbia between 2023 and 2025," Farbiarz said. "Or about whether the petitioner's First amendment rights are being violated.
..... "Rather, the issue now before the court has been this: does the Constitution allow the secretary of State to use Section 1227 [of Immigration law], as applied through the determination, to try to remove the petitioner from the United States?
..... "The court's answer: likely not."
.....
The U. S. government said Khalil had inaccuracies about his employment history and affiliations in his application for lawful permanent residence that warranted his removal. Khalil was not likely to succeed on this, Farbiarz wrote.
..... Khalil, who graduated with a master's from Columbia in December, [2024] was the first publicly known case in which the Trump administration attempted to deport a student over pro-Palestinian speech or activist,. Civil rights group say it could set a precedent on the civil rights of non-citizens.