Federal judge issues temporary order to keep detained Columbia student in Vermont
A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order to keep Mohsen Mahdawi, the Columbia student who was arrested during his citizenship interview last week, in Vermont while his case proceeds.
In the written order filed on Thursday morning, U.S. District Judge Geoffrey Crawford said the order was necessary to "prevent disputes" about jurisdiction "or any other issues that may arise in the case of involuntary movement of a petitioner between states."
On Wednesday, Judge Crawford said he was going to issue the temporary restraining order and ordered a hearing for next week to decide whether Mahdawi should be released while the case continues.
Mahdawi, who co-founded a university organization called the Palestinian Student Union with detained Columbia student Mahmoud Khalil, is a permanent resident of the U.S. and was taking his last step in the process for him to become a U.S. citizen before his arrest, his attorneys said.
During the hearing Wednesday, attorneys for Mahdawi argued that the federal judge in Vermont should preserve the court's jurisdiction in the case and said that an immigration court "does not have the authority to address the egregious violation of his First Amendment."
The judge seemed to agree with Mahdawi's attorneys and pointed out that Mahdawi is a Vermont resident and that he was arrested in the state.
Judge Crawford said that he will give the government until Monday to reply to Mahdawi's attorneys' motion for release.
Michael Drescher, the acting U.S. attorney for the District of Vermont, said Wednesday he was not authorized to "justify" the extension of the TRO to keep Mahdawi in Vermont. Drescher also requested an opportunity to respond to Mahdawi's attorney's motion from Tuesday requesting his release.
"It is a privilege to be granted a visa or green card to live and study in the United States of America," Tricia McLaughlin, assistant secretary for public affairs at the Department of Homeland Security, told ABC News in a statement. "When you advocate for violence, glorify and support terrorists that relish the killing of Americans, and harass Jews, that privilege should be revoked, and you should not be in this country."
