A federal judge decided that the case of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University protester facing deportation, will remain in New Jersey instead of moving to Louisiana. This ruling enables Khalil's attorneys to present his case in a jurisdiction that may be more favorable. Khalil was detained amid the Trump administration's crackdown on noncitizen student activists. His lawyers argue that the government's attempt to shift the case represents a drastic reinterpretation of the law aimed at limiting his legal access and rights.
The Court's jurisdiction is not defeated by the Petitioner having been moved to Louisiana, describing the government's argument otherwise as "unpersuasive."
If the case were to go forward in Louisiana, it may have ultimately ended up before one of the nation's most conservative appeals courts.
Khalil's attorneys have accused the government of advancing a 'radical reinterpretation' of existing law to move the case to a more favorable venue.
Khalil was detained by federal immigration agents on March 8 in the lobby of his university-owned apartment, marking the first arrest under Trump's crackdown.
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