NEW YORK — The Trump administration’s bid to deport Columbia University student and pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil is likely unconstitutional, a U.S. judge said on Wednesday, finding that the little-used provision of immigration law invoked by the government was too vague.
U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz’s ruling marked the first time a federal judge has weighed in on the constitutionality of President Donald Trump’s use of a law granting the U.S. secretary of state the power to seek the deportation of any non-citizen whose presence in the country is deemed adverse to U.S. foreign policy interests.
The Newark, New Jersey-based judge said the law, known as Section 1227, was vague because people would have no way of knowing what might get them deported.
“An ordinary person would have had no real inkling that a Section 1227 removal could go forward in this way —- without the Secretary first determining that there has been an impact on American relations with another country,” Farbiarz said in a 101-page ruling.
Khalil is currently being held in immigration detention in Louisiana. Farbiarz’ ruling did not address his bid to be released. The judge asked Khalil to submit additional written arguments before he makes a final ruling.
Khalil was arrested by immigration agents on March 8 after the State Department used the law to revoke his green card. He was the first student known to be arrested as part of Trump’s effort to deport foreign students who took part in pro-Palestinian protests that swept U.S. college campuses after Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack on Israel and Israel’s subsequent military assault.
Khalil and his supporters say his arrest and attempted deportation are violations of his right to freedom of speech under the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment.
Farbiarz has blocked officials from deporting Khalil while his challenge to the constitutionality of his arrest plays out.
