Judge warns administration against changing immigration status of students who sued over free speech
Source: ABC News
January 23, 2026, 11:22 AM
A federal judge in Boston has ruled that academics and students who were part of a lawsuit alleging an "unconstitutional conspiracy" by the Trump administration to target them for their pro-Palestinian activism may seek immediate relief if the government attempts to alter their immigration status. U.S. District Judge William Young, who ruled last year that the government had illegally targeted the students for deportation based on their speech, also unsealed internal government documents that were used as evidence in last year's trial.
The documents, released with Young's ruling on Thursday, included memos from the Department of Homeland Security indicating that the arrests of the five students and academics at the heart of the case -- including Columbia University pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil -- were recommended based on their involvement in campus protests, writings, and social media posts.
Judge finds Trump administration violated constitutional rights of pro-Palestinian protesters
In one document, Homeland Security officials said the agency had "not identified any alternative grounds of removability" for the academics and students apart from a rarely used law that grants the U.S. secretary of state discretion to deport non-citizens based on foreign policy interests.
According to the documents, officials also acknowledged the students and academics were "likely to challenge their removal under this authority" and that courts may "scrutinize the basis for these determinations."
Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/judge-warns-administration-changing-immigration-status-students-sued/story?id=129490453
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