Federal judge again blocks deportation of anti-Israel Columbia protester

A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration from detaining a Columbia University candidate and lawful permanent resident whom federal agents have targeted for deportation after she took part in an anti-Israel demonstration earlier this year U S District Judge Naomi Reice Buchwald s preliminary injunction on Thursday blocks Immigration and Customs Enforcement ICE from taking -year-old Yunseo Chung into custody Chung is originally from South Korea and has lived in the U S since she was seven years old ICE had attempted to arrest her in March but were unsuccessful and the court has now barred ICE from detaining her without prior approval FEDERAL JUDGE BLOCKS DETENTION OF COLUMBIA ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTER YUNSEO CHUNGIf the administration tries to detain Chung for any reason other than her expected deportation it must give hours' notice to Chung s lawyers and the court and allow the court time to determine if the detention attempt is a pretext for First Amendment retaliation The ruling also states that she remains free while her legal development proceeds Ramzi Kassem co-director of CLEAR a legal nonprofit at City University of New York that is representing Chung praised the ruling This is a win not just for Yunseo and for the legions of people who stand up for Palestinians and oppose the daily atrocities in Gaza that our regime underwrites but also for freedom of speech and the rule of law in our country Kassem announced in a message per the Washington Post It comes after the same judge in March ordered immigration officers to cease their efforts to arrest Chung The Trump administration has alleged that her participation in a protest poses a potentially serious adverse foreign framework consequence for the United States COLUMBIA FACULTY HOLD 'EMERGENCY VIGIL' TO PROTEST UNIVERSITY RESPONSE TO TRUMPChung s attorneys say that the establishment s pursuit of the Columbia aspirant is an unjustifiable assault on the First Amendment Chung sued the cabinet earlier this year The lawsuit states that Chung was a participant in the anti-Israel protests not a leader and was one of a large group of college students expressing shared concerns over the war in Gaza Chung according to the lawsuit visited the Gaza Solidarity Encampment a number of tents organized in the center of campus but does not state whether she stayed there The lawsuit also makes it clear that she did not make masses statements or engage in high-profile pursuits while at the protests Chung s lawsuit states that she was never arrested or disciplined in relation to events at the encampment However she was later arrested during a protest at Barnard College The lawsuit contends that it is common in New York City for police to arrest several protesters and that charges are usually dropped or dismissed The lawsuit states that on March an ICE official signed an administrative arrest warrant for Chung and federal law enforcement went to Chung s parents house the next day seeking to arrest her CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APPAn ICE official allegedly stated Chung s attorneys on March that her green card had been revoked according to the lawsuit The executive has the authority to rescind permanent resident status if it believes that a person has violated U S immigration law Chung s attorneys say in the lawsuit that law enforcement searched Chung s dorm room on March in accordance with a warrant She was valedictorian of her high school senior class and has a near-perfect GPA heading into her senior year according to court documents Chung is double-majoring in English and women s and gender studies at Columbia the Washington Post announced The Trump administration has also sought to deport former Columbia scholar Mahmoud Khalil whom it accuses of playing a major role in anti-Israel protests at Columbia University