A federal judge in New York will examine the arguments on Wednesday morning at the arrest and detention of Mahmoud Khalil, a recent green card holder and graduate from Columbia who played an important role in the pro-Palestinian protests at the University.
Khalil, who is Palestinian and a permanent legal resident of the United States, was arrested by federal immigration agents in New York City on Saturday before being transferred to an installation in Jena, Louisiana, where he is currently being detained. His lawyers are challenging the move in court while they seek to return their client to New York.
The United States District Judge, Jesse M. Furman, temporarily prevented Khalil from being deported in a ruling on Monday, saying that he will remain in the United States as the court weighs the challenge to his arrest and detention in Louisiana. This case is separated from any procedure that Khalil will face in the Immigration Court to determine if he must be deported and his green card removed
Khalil’s legal team and Trump administration presented a joint letter on Tuesday night saying that “the parties do not agree on how the matter should be handled”, creating a need for the audience.
The Trump Administration in La Letter said that it is trying to transfer or dismiss the request for habeas corpus presented by Khalil’s lawyers, saying that the Judicial District in New York is not the appropriate place and has no adequate jurisdiction.
Khalil’s lawyer, according to the letter, said that the “extraordinary circumstances of the case” authorize the court to “grant immediate relief” to Khalil regardless of the question of the place. They are urging the judge to order their client liberated from the arrest in Louisiana and returned to New York, where his legal team is.
Khalil will not be present on Wednesday, they said.
In a statement on Tuesday night, Khalil’s wife, who is an American citizen and eight months pregnant, said “Mahmoud has been torn from me without any reason.”
She said that the couple had returned from an Iftar dinner when they were followed and confronted by ice agents at their home at Columbia University. Ifar is a meal that breaks fasting during the observations of the Holy Month of the Ramadan of Muslims.
ICE agents told her and her lawyer, who were talking on the phone, who had an order to revoke Khalil’s student, according to judicial documents. When the lawyer told the agents that he had a green card, they replied that they were there to revoke their green card, their lawyers said.
“They did not show us any court order and ICE officers hung the phone to our lawyer,” said his wife, who was appointed note.
“In a matter of minutes, they handcuffed Mahmoud, took him to the street and forced an unmarked car,” he said in the statement. “Seeing this game in front of me was traumatic: he felt like a scene of a movie that I never enrolled to see.”
On early Tuesday, the State Department and the White House indicated a provision that allows green card holders to be eliminated from the country if they have “potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States.”
“In such cases, the Secretary of State notifies the Secretary of the Department of National Security, who has the authority to initiate elimination positions,” said a state department spokesman in response to questions about the circumstances of Khalil’s arrest.
It is not clear if Khalil currently faces immigration charges, which are separated from criminal charges.
A lawyer from Khalil, Samah Sisay, rejected the Trump administration claim, saying that there is no evidence that his client provides support to any kind to a terrorist organization.
Khalil’s legal team also said that his arrest was a violation of his rights of freedom of expression and that he was attacked due to his views.
“He was chosen as an example to quell the completely legal dissent in violation of the first amendment,” said lawyer Amy Greer.
Adam Cox, a law professor and immigration expert at the University of New York, said the provision in the immigration and nationality law cited by the administration of Khalil’s arrest historically has been used in rare circumstances.
“If the administration began using that in a generalized way to arrest people and argue that they are deportable, it would be a huge change of historical practice,” he said.
Khali’s arrest has caused protests on the university campus throughout the country, as well as in the City Council and at Washington Square Park in Manhattan on Tuesday afternoon.
New York City Police officers arrested a dozen protesters on Tuesday during the protests in the center of Manhattan asking for their release. Twelve people were arrested and 11 were cited, and a man was arrested for obstructing government administration and disorderly behavior, the officers said.
