The detained Columbia University activist Mohsen Mahdawi was released from prison Wednesday morning after a federal judge's ruling in Burlington. He will be able to remain at home in Vermont and attend classes amid ongoing immigration proceedings.
The Trump administration, which detained Mahdawi at a citizenship appointment in Vermont earlier this month and argues that Mahdawi is a threat to foreign policy, had signaled an intent to appeal the decision.
Mahdawi's lawyers say his arrest was unconstitutional, in retaliation for Mahdawi's advocacy for Palestinian human rights.
In granting Mahdawi's motion to release, U.S. District Court Judge Geoffrey Crawford found that Mahdawi was not a risk of fleeing from court proceedings or harming the community. Crawford said Mahdawi can go back to his home in Vermont and continue attending classes at Columbia University, where he's supposed to graduate this spring.
Some of Mahdawi's supporters quietly cried and held hands in the courtroom as Crawford read his decision.
After the ruling, Mahdawi addressed a crowd outside the courthouse.
Hearings in Mahdawi's immigration court case, which is separate, are scheduled to begin soon.
The three members of Vermont's congressional delegation 鈥� Sen. Peter Welch, Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Becca Balint 鈥� have opposed his arrest, and Welch visited Mahdawi in prison earlier in the month. In a statement, they said Wednesday's decision meant the constitutional right to due process has prevailed.
"Mohsen Mahdawi is here in the United States legally and acted legally. He should never have experienced this grave injustice,鈥� Sanders, Welch, and Balint said in the statement. 鈥淭he Trump Administration鈥檚 actions in this case鈥攁nd in so many other cases of wrongfully detained, deported, and disappeared people 鈥� are shameful and immoral. This is an important first step. We will continue the fight against President Trump鈥檚 assault on the rule of law.鈥�
This is a developing story and will be updated.
