ACLU Applauds Pinellas-Pasco State Attorney Bernie McCabe on Dropping Charges Against Equality Florida's Leader

BURLINGTON, Vt. – From the bench, Judge Geoffrey W. Crawford ordered the release of Mohsen Mahdawi from prison on bail today, pending the resolution of his habeas petition. The government requested that Judge Crawford pause his release from prison for seven days by issuing a stay of the order, which the judge denied. “Mohsen is a ray of light in his communities, and we are so relieved that today he walked out those courtroom doors and back into the arms of his loved ones,” said Luna Droubi, partner of Beldock Levine & Hoffman LLP. “Their claims and actions are baseless, without evidence, and are a disgrace to the U.S. Constitution. We will keep fighting until Mohsen is free for good.” In a comment outside of the courthouse, Mohsen thanked supporters, leading a chant: “The people united will never be defeated” across a crowd of hundreds of Vermonters. “We are pro-peace and anti-war,” he added. In closing, Mohsen shared a heartfelt message to Palestinians: “To my people in Palestine: I feel your pain, I see your suffering; and I see freedom and it is very very soon.” Mr. Mahdawi is a lawful permanent resident of the United States who has lived in Vermont for 10 years and is set to graduate from Columbia University in May. ICE detained Mr. Mahdawi in direct retaliation for his advocacy of Palestinian rights. He was taken on April 14, directly after his long-awaited naturalization interview at an immigration field office. After apprehending him, ICE attempted to put him on a plane to Louisiana, but a temporary restraining order issued by Judge William K. Sessions III compelled the government to keep Mr. Mahdawi in Vermont. Other information about this is available here. Mr. Mahdawi is represented by Cyrus Mehta and David Isaacson of Cyrus D. Mehta Partners, PLLC; Luna Droubi of Beldock Levine & Hoffman LLP; Andrew Delaney of Martin Delaney & Ricci Law Group; CLEAR; the American Civil Liberties Union; and the ACLU of Vermont. The following are quotes from Mr. Mahdawi’s legal team: “Mohsen is a valued member of his community here in Vermont. His friends and neighbors — and people across the country — are right to be deeply concerned by the government’s retaliation against him,” said Lia Ernst, legal director at the ACLU of Vermont. “Mohsen has committed no crime, and the government’s only supposed justification for holding him in prison is the content of his speech. We are proud to be on his legal team and we won’t stop fighting for Mohsen’s freedom.” “The court’s order to free Mohsen today is a victory for Mohsen, in his just pursuit of continued advocacy for Palestinian lives, and it is a victory for all people in this country invested in their ability to dissent and speak and protest for causes they are morally drawn to. We will continue our legal battle for Mohsen until his constitutional rights are fully vindicated,” said Shezza Abboushi Dallal, staff attorney with CLEAR. “Nobody should fear detention for exercising their rights under the First Amendment. We are delighted that the court recognized that Mohsen is not a flight risk and that he should be released while his case proceeds,” said Nathan Freed Wessler, deputy director of the ACLU’s Speech, Privacy, and Technology Project.

NEWARK, N.J. – The U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey ruled today that Mahmoud Khalil, a lawful permanent resident and recent Columbia graduate student, can move forward with his lawsuit claiming the government is unlawfully detaining him for his political views. The court rejected the government’s attempt to shut down Mr. Khalil’s case before it could be heard. “As I am now caring for our barely week-old son, it is even more urgent that we continue to speak out for Mahmoud’s freedom, and for the freedom of all people being unjustly targeted for advocating against Israel's genocide in Gaza,” said Dr. Noor Abdalla, wife of Mahmoud Khalil. “I am relieved at the court’s finding that my husband can move forward with his case in federal court. This is an important step towards securing Mahmoud’s freedom. But there is still more work to be done. I will continue to strongly advocate for my husband, so he can come home to our family, and feel the pure joy all parents know of holding your first-born child in your arms.” “The court has affirmed that the federal government does not have the unreviewable authority to trample on our fundamental freedoms,” said Noor Zafar, senior staff attorney with the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project. “This is a huge step forward for Mahmoud and for the other students and scholars that the Trump administration has unlawfully detained in retaliation for their political speech, and a rebuke of attempts by the executive to use immigration laws to weaken First Amendment protections for political gain.” The Trump administration has tried to argue that provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act prevent the court from reviewing Mr. Khalil’s First Amendment claims right now. But the court firmly disagreed, concluding “that jurisdiction is not stripped over the Petitioner’s claims that the Secretary of State’s determination and the alleged policy are unconstitutional.” In a previous ruling, the court blocked Mr. Khalil’s deportation in the absence of a court order. “Today we moved one step closer to vindicating Mr. Khalil’s rights by challenging his unlawful detention and the administration’s unconstitutional and retaliatory actions against him,” said Amy Greer, associate attorney at Dratel + Lewis. “We're grateful the court has held it has the power to hear this important case, meaning Mr. Khalil is one step closer to returning home to his family,” said Amol Sinha, executive director of the ACLU-NJ. “Mr. Khalil has been unlawfully detained in direct retaliation for his advocacy in support of Palestinian rights. The federal government continues to prolong proceedings despite knowing that targeting a lawful permanent resident over protected speech is indefensible in a court of law.” Mr. Khalil’s legal team has pending motions before the court to compel his return from Louisiana and to grant bail. In addition, his legal team is urging the court to grant a preliminary injunction (PI), which would immediately release him from custody to be reunited with his wife, who recently gave birth to the couple’s first child while Mr. Khalil remained in ICE detention. If granted, the PI would also block President Trump’s policy of arresting and detaining noncitizens who have engaged in First Amendment protected activity in support of Palestinian rights. “We are grateful the court wisely understood that this is no ordinary immigration case that might be subject to congressional limitations on federal court review,” said Baher Azmy, legal director of the Center for Constitutional Rights. ““In a case like this, where Mahmoud is challenging a patently unconstitutional policy and being punished for his protected speech in support of Palestinian rights, the federal courts have to review and hopefully soon invalidate the government’s outrageous action.” “With this ruling, the Court has made clear that the Trump administration cannot do an end run around the judiciary in its attempt to silence Mahmoud Khalil and suppress speech supporting Palestinian rights,” said Donna Lieberman, executive director of the NYCLU. “Now, Mr. Khalil’s claims can move forward – putting him one step closer to returning home to his wife and newborn son." On March 8, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) illegally arrested and detained Mr. Khalil in direct retaliation for his advocacy for Palestinian rights at Columbia University. Shortly after, DHS transferred him 1,400 miles away to a Louisiana detention facility — ripping him away from his wife and legal counsel. His suit argues that his arrest and continued detention violate his constitutional rights, including rights to free speech and due process, and that they go beyond the government’s legal authority. “The court's decision today clears the way for what really matters: continuing the legal fight to bring Mahmoud home so he can reunite with Noor and resume his defense of Palestinian rights,” said Ramzi Kassem, co-director of CLEAR. Mr. Khalil is represented by Dratel & Lewis, the Center for Constitutional Rights, CLEAR, Van Der Hout LLP, Washington Square Legal Services, the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU), the ACLU of New Jersey, and American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). The decision can be found here. For all case materials, please see here.

NEW YORK – The Second Circuit Court of Appeals yesterday issued an administrative stay while it considers the government’s request for an emergency stay of Judge Sessions’ order to transfer Rümeysa Öztürk to Vermont, as well as her legal team’s opposition to that request. The appeals court ordered the government to reply to her opposition by Thursday, May 1, and set arguments for Tuesday, May 6. The Second Circuit’s order is not a ruling on the merits of the government’s request to keep Ms. Öztürk in a Louisiana detention center. Ms. Öztürk’s legal team released the following statement in response: “Rümeysa Öztürk never should have been arrested and detained, period. We are ready to argue her case before the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, and we won’t stop fighting until she is free.” Ms. Öztürk, a former Fulbright scholar and current Tufts University Ph.D. student researching child development, was arrested on March 25 by plainclothes Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents in Massachusetts in retaliation for co-authoring an op-ed in the Tufts student newspaper. After the arrest, the government transported her through multiple states, then flew her thousands of miles away to Louisiana. On April 4, just 24 hours after a court hearing, a federal judge in Massachusetts ruled that the challenge to ICE’s detention of Ms. Öztürk should continue in Vermont, not Louisiana. The U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont affirmed that Ms. Öztürk’s federal case should continue in Vermont and that the government must transfer her back to a facility in Vermont by May 1. The government appealed this decision last week. Ms. Öztürk is represented in immigration court by Mahsa Khanbabai and Marty Rosenbluth, and in federal court by Mahsa Khanbabai, the American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Massachusetts, ACLU of Vermont, CLEAR, and Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP.

JENA, La. — Attorneys for Mahmoud Khalil, a U.S. green card holder who has been detained for almost two months after speaking out in support of Palestinian freedom, filed two motions early this morning seeking to ensure fairness and transparency at his upcoming immigration hearings. The two motions demand the court address serious due process violations that marred his last hearing and ensure the public’s right to access future proceedings. At Mr. Khalil’s April 11 hearing, despite federal policy guaranteeing lawyers the right to use electronic devices during immigration court proceedings, his in-person counsel was abruptly barred from bringing laptops or phones into the courtroom — while Department of Homeland Security attorneys were allowed to use theirs. Even after Nora Ahmed of the ACLU of Louisiana confirmed her right to bring electronics with facility officials before the hearing, she was forced to surrender all devices moments before court began. She was also denied the chance to raise the issue with the facility administrator or to challenge the decision on the record. As the motion explains, “the denial implicates issues of fundamental fairness in these proceedings and was particularly troubling because it occurred at a hearing of such enormous consequence for Mr. Khalil.” In a separate filing, Mr. Khalil’s legal team also urged the court to expand public access to future hearings. During previous hearings, hundreds of members of the public attempted to observe remotely but were shut out — 550 individuals were denied access to a Webex link on April 8 alone. No overflow room was provided, and no accommodation was made for those turned away, despite widespread public interest and the First Amendment right to open court proceedings. The motions filed today seek to correct these violations by ensuring Mr. Khalil’s attorneys can use necessary electronic devices in court, and by expanding access to hearings through Webex, telephonic lines, or an overflow room for members of the public and press. “What happened to Mahmoud Khalil is not unique — detained immigrants across the country face barriers to a fair hearing every day,” said Nora Ahmed, legal director of the ACLU of Louisiana. “By standing up for Mahmoud’s rights, we’re fighting to make sure that no one else is silenced by arbitrary restrictions or denied the basic tools they need to defend themselves in court. Fairness, transparency, and equal access to justice must be guaranteed for everyone — not just the government.” These motions come just days after the Trump administration admitted Mr. Khalil was taken without an arrest warrant. In the federal court, Mr. Khalil’s legal team is continuing to seek bail, an order compelling the government to return him to New Jersey, and a preliminary injunction (PI) that would immediately release him from custody and allow him to reunite with his family in New York while his immigration case proceeds. If granted, the PI would also block President Trump’s policy of arresting and detaining noncitizens who have engaged in First Amendment protected activity in support of Palestinian rights. Mr. Khalil is represented by Dratel & Lewis, the Center for Constitutional Rights, CLEAR, Van Der Hout LLP, Washington Square Legal Services, the American Civil Liberties Union, the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU), and the ACLU of New Jersey.