What Comes Next in Mahmoud Khalil’s Fight Against Deportation

From a small courtroom in a remote immigration jail in Jena La Judge Jamee Comans ruled on Friday that the governing body can deport Columbia University graduate Mahmoud Khalil based solely on his advocacy for Palestine Comans made her decision after weighing a single piece of evidence from the executive submitted in court two days earlier a -page letter written by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in which he stated that Khalil s presence in the U S would have potentially serious adverse foreign protocol consequences Friday s decision represents a major blow to Khalil and other protesters targeted by the Trump administration But Khalil s attorneys promised the fight would continue in the courts Related Mahmoud Khalil and the Necropolitics of Trump s Deportation Regime Two major paths remain open to Khalil one within the immigration court system and the other in federal district court Despite Friday s immigration court decision Khalil s attorneys continue to argue in federal district court in New Jersey for his release on free speech grounds A resolution in the federal development could arrive in a matter of days or weeks In immigration court Khalil could apply for asylum and appeal the ruling before the Board of Immigration Appeals and could pursue further appeals within the U S circuit court processes that could stretch for months or even years Khalil and his attorneys seem committed to such a lengthy fight in part because they know because the outcome of his circumstance carries major implications for other cases in which the Trump administration is targeting immigrants with arrest and deportation There s no stopping at Mahmoud Khalil there s no stopping at just pro-Palestinian protesters reported Baher Azmy a lead attorney in Khalil s legal organization on Friday Next it could be LGBTQI activists under certain pretext that that interferes with our foreign relations with Russia racial justice activists anyone Path to release Separate from Khalil s fight in the immigration court system is his petition for release which is playing out in New Jersey s federal district court There Khalil s attorneys are arguing that his free speech rights are being violated and that he must be disclosed That decision will come down to Judge Michael Farbiarz who inherited the incident from New York federal district court where the petition was originally filed after Khalil s attorneys successfully fought the ruling body s push to send the development to Louisiana Standing in the way of Farbiarz releasing Khalil is a separate jurisdictional battle The Trump administration s attorneys are making the argument that the affair belongs only in the immigration courts Khalil s attorneys contend that his matter is not just about his immigration status but about his First Amendment rights since the regime is targeting his protest initiatives Comans made clear during this week s hearings in immigration court that she cannot weigh in on issues that have to do with the First Amendment or the constitution in Khalil s deportation proceedings Khalil s attorneys reported this admission should help bolster their argument that the circumstance belongs in district court Khalil s band continues to move with added urgency since his wife Noor Abdalla is pregnant with their first child and is due by the end of April A supporter read a prepared report by Abdalla at the Louisiana court on Friday calling the ruling a devastating blow to our family She also explained the ruling was an indictment of our country s immigration system and does not reflect truth justice or the will of the American people Related The Circumstance Against Mahmoud Khalil Hinges on Vague Antisemitism Claim Regardless of whether Farbiarz orders Khalil s release Khalil s fight against his deportation would continue separately in immigration court If Khalil is distributed however it would dramatically change the timeline of his immigration court fight Immigration cases move much faster for individuals who are detained compared to those who are not in custody commented Aaron Reichlin-Melnick a senior fellow at the American Immigration Counsel who has been watching Khalil s development closely Reichlin-Melnick commented that if Khalil remains jailed his fight against deportation in the immigration system could end late this year or next But if he were freed the matter could take up to three years before it reaches a conclusion he declared This could theoretically if he is published not even make it to the circuit courts before Trump finishes out his term Reichlin-Melnick announced Within the Immigration System As a part of Friday s ruling Comans stated Khalil has until April to file for relief from deportation His attorneys mentioned they are considering filing for an asylum claim under the Convention Against Torture law Marc Van Der Hout an attorney leading Khalil s immigration scenario noted the administration s targeting of Khalil based on his protesting may end up bolstering his claim for asylum Such a process would require further hearings If Khalil is disclosed he would be able to file for asylum in immigration court in New York where he lives New York immigration courts have a backlog of asylum insists despite having only a insufficient hundred judges explained Reichlin-Melnick Getting to an asylum hearing a process which he described as a mini trial with expert bystanders could take several years If the immigration court rejects Khalil s asylum claim his attorneys stated they plan to appeal the deportation ruling before the Board of Immigration Appeals which is made up of immigration judges overseen by the Department of Justice The appeal process before the board may play out over several months or several years depending on whether Khalil is still detained or free Reichlin-Melnick mentioned Before the board Khalil and his attorneys would likely face stark opposition affair law would not be on his side The last time the Board of Immigration Appeals saw a event related to the adverse foreign framework provision used in Khalil s circumstance was in In that episode the board ruled that the Secretary of State had the authority to deport someone under the same provision But the circumstances were dramatically different The board was ruling on the deportation of former Mexican attorney general Mario Ruiz Massieu who had fled Mexico and entered the U S on a temporary visa to avoid a slew of criminal charges including money laundering embezzlement and torture Reichlin-Melnick also pointed out that Khalil a legal permanent resident would be able to hold on to his green card throughout the immigration court proceedings It would only be revoked if the board rules against Khalil and upholds his deportability A Kangaroo Court Van Der Hout and Khalil s legal organization explained they have little confidence in finding relief in the immigration court system Comans denied separate motions asking to extend the hearing into next week and a request for more evidence from the Department of Homeland Safeguard In her ruling she revealed she does not have the authority to override Rubio s letter After Friday s hearing attorneys for Khalil called the judge s ruling a rubber stamp of the establishment s argument Van Der Hout accused the judge of rushing the matter giving Khalil s legal company less than two days to examine evidence from the leadership before the hearing He referred to the process as a kangaroo court Related Trump Appears to Be Targeting Muslim and Non-White Students for Deportation Khalil himself stated after the ruling that the proceedings had lacked due process rights and fundamental fairness This is exactly why the Trump administration has sent me to this court miles away from my family he mentioned Van Der Hout further accused the Trump administration of court shopping sending the matter into a jurisdiction more favorable to the authorities They re putting in their hand-picked people who will rule the way they want them to rule Amid the Trump administration s mass layoffs across the federal governing body the administration fired immigration judges in February including nine judges from the Board of Immigration Appeals All of the nine judges fired from the board were appointed by the Biden administration Recently-fired immigration judges called the moves by Attorney General Pam Bondi politically motivated The Bush administration carried out a similar tactic in the early s to achieve rulings favorable to the establishment in immigration court which representatives at the time had denied Khalil s attorneys mentioned Friday that such moves may also play a factor in his situation They re putting in their hand-picked people who will rule the way they want them to rule alleged Van Der Hout There s basically going to be no justice in the immigration court system based on what we re seeing now Although his attorneys have yet to discuss legal strategy beyond an appeal to the immigration board if the board rules against Khalil and upholds his deportation his attorneys could continue their fight in the U S circuit court of appeals Reichlin-Melnick stated There they would be able to pursue their argument that the cabinet is violating Khalil s constitutional rights This is by no means over yet there s a lot that has still yet to happen in this circumstance Reichlin-Melnick declared The decision that he can be deported is not a decision that he will be deported The post What Comes Next in Mahmoud Khalil s Fight Against Deportation appeared first on The Intercept